Fire officials counter citizens complaints about slow response to emergencies CAIRO: It s a catch-22 situation. Complaints by Cairo s citizens about slow or in some cases, non-existent response, to fire emergencies, is on the rise. On the other hand, fire officials blame citizens for their ignorance of the emergency procedures that should be followed. "In Egypt, people never pay attention to abiding by the legal safety rules. If followed, the number of fire cases will drastically diminish in different buildings and associations, says Nadia Moustafa, a manager of the Safety and General Security Office of Nasr City. Certain safety procedures should be followed in each and every building in Cairo, including schools, hospitals, companies, factories and homes. Electric masses are considered one of the main reasons for fire outbreaks and accordingly, Moustafa says each Safety and General Security Office in Cairo should make sure that electric cycles are securely settled in every home, store or large association. "Electric loads should be reasonable, electric wires should be covered and stored in the walls to maintain a safe atmosphere. Especially in summer, the electric loads are really high, so it is important to always check the heat rates, says Moustafa. As for the safety rules specified for large associations and organizations such as shopping malls, factories, hospitals, large companies and schools, Moustafa says a quarter of the workers should be trained in fire fighting and should receive a certificate from the civil defense, stating that they have finished their required firefighting training period, to be ready to efficiently put out any fire. Moustafa emphasizes the importance of exits in any association, saying that the number of exits should be determined by the number of employees in a given association. "A small supermarket should have two exits, so that it would be easy for the workers to get out in case of fire, but in large factories, not less than eight exists should be available, says Moustafa. She adds that all companies and factories should form a Committee of Safety and Vocational Health Care to monitor how safety procedures are followed in the organization. "The role of this committee will appear in checking out the availability of fire extinguishers, the electric circuits and any other factors that might threaten the safety of the association, says Moustafa. She adds that each association should present an emergency plan for the office, explaining how the staff can safely escape in case of fire. A police officer in the firefighting department, who spoke on condition of anonymity, says more fires occur in summer than winter, due to either the high electric loads or human mistakes. He says the firemen do their best to reach fires. "[Firemen] receive the call from the central police station. Our first act is to make sure that the call of the citizen wasn't faked, but even if the call was faked, the fire trucks normally move within 30 seconds in any case, and arrive between five and 10 minutes to the fire location, the officer says. However, traffic jams often hinder the fire trucks from arriving as quickly as they should, he adds. At least two fire trucks, carrying five firemen each, are dispatched to each fire. The fire trucks are equipped with hydraulic stairs that can be extended up to 62 meters to save residents and put out fires on upper floors. After calling the department back to announce their arrival, the firemen start their firefighting process, which is divided into three main tasks: starvation, smothering and cooling. "Fire starvation is removing any nearby materials that may lead to heat reproduction and fire spread in the location. It is called starvation, because the fire can't eat (burn) any other nearby materials, thus it can't spread, the officer says. The second task, fire smothering, is accomplished when firemen cover the fire with extinguishing powder and carbon dioxide gas to stop oxygen, which helps the fire to spread, from reaching the fire. For the last task, cooling, firemen use the water pumps to lower the temperature of the burned materials, to eliminate the possibility of another fire outbreak. The officer says while the fire is being extinguished, the residents' reactions are quite important. "Some people actually help the firemen, while some hinder them from doing their work by incorrectly using the fire fighting equipment and even fighting with the firemen, says the officer. He highlights the importance of being calm and sensible during fires, so that the firemen are able to do their work efficiently. The importance of having firefighting equipment in every apartment or association cannot be underestimated. Yehia Abdin, president of Yehia Company for Fire Fighting and Safety Equipment, highlights the importance of having this equipment, but says people don't take the responsibility seriously enough, due to lack of awareness. "People only buy fire equipment when they are forced to or when they are exposed to tough fines. Regardless of the fines or punishments, people should be highly aware of the importance of having this equipment available to be used in any case of emergency, says Abdin. According to Abdin, people working in certain industries are meticulous about having this equipment available. "Mostly, petroleum and medical companies as well as factories insist on applying safety procedures. However, any organization that includes workers is required to have fire and safety equipments, says Abdin. The price of safety equipment differs according to the type and size, but equipment starts at LE 160, the cost of a 3 kg fire extinguisher, while the maximum is LE 9,000, for a 100 kg fire extinguisher used in factories, he adds.
