This work describes an importa... free essay sample

This work describes an important aspect within the field of safety in residential area namely fire safety. This paper presents 2 case studies on fire based accidents in nearby residential areas. Under these case studies important aspects such as cause, immediate response, emergency preparedness planning, loss in terms of life and property as well as prevention and control measures have been discussed. This paper also focuses on the actual causes of majority of fire related accidents in residential areas mainly student hostels. Special emphasis has been put on at risk behavior/ unsafe behavior leading to these catastrophic accidents. Majority of accidents are result of unsafe acts rather than unsafe conditions thus BBS plays an important role in preventing accidents and bringing risk to an acceptable level by means of spreading awareness. Apart from it, this paper also highlights the different types of residential fires, their prevention and control measures focusing on use of different chemical extinguishers for different types of fire, different types of smoke detectors, fire alarms, role of sprinkler system and emergency exit plan. This paper also presents a full fledged emergency planning and response plan for a local student hostel primarily focusing on duration of mock drills, training of hostel staff, provision of proper fire fighting equipments in the hostel premises and their compliance with the appropriate standards.INTRODUCTIONFire disasters are one of the most common and catastrophic disasters in the world today. This study aims at analyzing residential fires in high rise buildings. High rise buildings pose high risk of fire because of its configuration into widely varying specifications leading to a diverse building environment with many variables which make the hazards difficult to identify and control. Requirement for fire prevention and control in high rise building is inevitable because of higher occupancy and longer distance to exit discharge which may lead to more casualties and property loss.Urban economy is developing rapidly, as a result land resources are becoming scarse every year and high rise buildings are gaining a great deal of importance. The design of these high rise buildings is very complex thus calling for an urgent need of developing ways to handle fire safety situation and it has become a major issue for the society.Some of the major fires in high rise buildings in the recent years are as follows 1) 26 Jan 2018, A hospital in fire in Miryang, South Korea killed atleast 37 people and injured more than 131 others.2) 28 Dec 2017, Kamala Mill s fire in Mumbai killed 14 people.3) 28 Dec 2017, Apartment buildings caught fire on Prospect Avenue in the Bronx in Newyork city killed 124) 26 April 2016, A fire broke out on the top floor of National Museum of Natural History in NewDelhi, no casualities were reported. 5) 2015, Afire in a residential building in Baku, Azerbaijan kills 14 people.Fire risk analysis of high rise building is important because these buildings still lack an efficient fire extinguish method for safe evacuation and if safe evacuation system is in place then many a times occupants of the buildings are not properly trained on how to respond in case of emergencies. Many a times the location of the building also plays a huge role as proper connecti ng roads might not be available making it difficult for fire fighting vehicles to reach on time. Building codes and regulations prescribe basic requirements for assuring fire and life safety in buildings. For implementing these codes and regulations it is required that a fire protection engineer is consulted since the design and construction stage of the building so as to develop a proactive approach towards fire fighting,but in reality a reactive approach is followed for fire fighting in high rise buildings, thus there is no proper compliance with legal requirements.CASE STUDIES1. 28 Dec 2017, Kamala Mills fire in MumbaiA major fire broke out in a pub in the Kamala Mills compound in Mumbai on Dec 28, 2017, early morning. The blaze was reported around 12.30 a.m. from a bistro The Mojo, a rooftop restaurant pub in The Kamla Trade House and quickly spread to another surrounding pub and a restaurant, said an official of BMC Disaster Control.More than 12 fire tenders were rushed to fight the blaze which was brought under control around 6.30 a.m. While the majority of the victims are reported to have perished on the spot, the firemen could rescue 10 others safely from the leaping flames. The injured have been admitted to the KEM Hospital and other hospitals for treatment. At least 14 people died and many others were injured.Doctors at KEM Hospital said all the victims, 11 of whom were women, died due to smoke inhalation after they were trapped inside the restaurants. Suffocation was assessed to be the prime reason of suffocation.The entire pub and the surrounding complex was full of patrons including many women and tourists thronging the fashionable area to unwind.Mumbai Police have booked the owner of the pub for negligence and other charges for the fire, suspected to be triggered by an electric short-circuit. The probe by Mumbai Police into the Kamala Mills fire tragedy has revealed that the fire might have caused due to a short circuit and the inflammable tarpaulin sheets used as sheds was responsible for spreading the blaze.The Polices probe has also revealed that the staff and the managers of 1Above fled the spot immediately after the fire broke out and failed to rescue the patrons. Also, all those who were killed in the deadly blaze were those who had come to dine at 1Above. Meanwhile, the Mumbai Police has formed numerous teams to locate the absconding accused. An officer said that when they entered the eatery, they found 12 bodies in the washroom while two were lying in the premises. Curtains served as a trigger for fire.Senior police inspector Ahmed Pathan from the NM Joshi Marg police station said that the FIR has been registered under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 337 (endangering personal safety of others), 338(causing grievous hurt by endangering per sonal safety of others) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code. Sources added that 1 Above had blocked the fire exit using iron rods. The original space is 20Ãâ€"20 sq ft in which only 4-5 five tables can be put. But the pub used the open space to add more tables.