To prevent fire tragedies, address systemic failures, Pg12

Key Highlights:

• A hospital fire in Cuttack, Odisha, resulted in 12 deaths due to a defunct fireproofing system and poorly designed exits.
• A fire in a Delhi commercial-cum-residential building killed nine family members, revealing violations like combustible material storage and a single entry/exit point.
• The National Building Code provides guidelines for fire safety, including alarms, sprinkler systems, and evacuation routes.
• Enforcement of fire safety regulations is weak in Indian cities, with infrequent fire audits and unchecked alterations to building designs.

Detailed Insights:

• Mixed land use in Indian cities, where commercial entities coexist with residential areas, requires strict vigilance from civic agencies to ensure fire safety.
• Electricity load recalibration is rarely done to reflect changing building use, and factory machinery overloads aging wiring systems, increasing the risk of short circuits.
• Safety buffers in the initial power load of non-residential buildings, especially hospitals, are often overlooked, leading to catastrophic consequences.
• Systemic failures, rather than individual culpability, are the primary cause of avoidable fire fatalities, demanding urgent and serious attention.

Key Concepts Involved:

• National Building Code: A set of guidelines for construction and maintenance of buildings, including fire safety measures.
• Fire Audit: An inspection to assess a building's fire safety measures and identify potential hazards.
• Mixed Land Use: The practice of allowing different types of land use, such as commercial and residential, in the same area.