Editorial
Hospitals' poor fire-fighting capacity
Take immediate corrective measures
It is just as well that the High Court had directed the DG Health to conduct survey and report on the state of fire safety measures at the hospitals, clinics and health centers across the country. And the picture we get of the equipment and trained manpower is discouraging.
One wonders why the DG Fire Service, or for that matter the DG Health, had to wait for a directive from the HC to conduct such a survey, which should have been done as part of their routine work. Had it been so these hospitals might have had modern and efficient fire detection and fighting capability in place by now.
We must record our dismay at the findings of the survey, at least of those that have appeared in this newspaper yesterday. The report exposes a poor state of anti-fire and fire fighting capability of the hospitals, both private and public; and these hospitals are of good repute.
We would hope that the hospital authorities keep in mind the fact that a fire emergency in a hospital needs more competent and technical handling than perhaps at any other location. We wonder why the hospital authorities do not gear up their capabilities with modern fire detection and fighting devices of their own volition without having to be prodded by one or the other government authorities?
The issue is too serious to be taken lightly. And we are glad to note that the fire service will be starting a training programme from next month. We suggest that the survey and training be not a one off exercise. It must be done regularly and the hospitals be given a timeframe within which they must bring their capability up to scratch.
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