A fire can happen at any time at any place irrespective of its occupancy status. Fire in any occupancy has the potential to cause harm to its occupants and severe damage to property.
In India, fire accounts for about 5.9 per cent of the total deaths reported during the year 2012. The fires have been rated as the 5th largest risk in India. Odisha recorded the highest number of deaths of 40 cases due to fire in commercial buildings out of 149 cases across the country in 2014 as per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
It has been observed that, electrical defaults are the major causes of fires in India. In any commercial or institutional context, a fire can result in substantial amounts of property damage, injuries and deaths. In healthcare facilities, a fire can pose an even greater threat to the life and health of individuals, as many people in hospitals aren't able to leave their beds because of their physical condition. Fires in these buildings can be particularly dangerous due to the presence of oxygen and other inflammable substances and the challenge of evacuating patients.
National Building Code (NBC), 2005, Part 4 - Fire and life Safety covers the requirements for fire prevention, life safety in relation to fire and fire protection of buildings. The code specifies planning and construction features and fire protection features for all occupancies that are necessary to minimize danger to life and property. The Chief Fire Officer may insist on suitable provisions in the building from fire safety and means of escape point of view depending on the occupancy, height or on account of new developments creating special fire hazard, in addition to the provision of these building regulations.
The legislations, standards and codes have a vital role in forcing the occupiers to provide the required fire protection system. Buildings shall be so planned, designed and constructed as to ensure fire safety and this shall be done as per NBC of India. As per the code, buildings on the basis of occupancies have been divided into different groups. Hospitals have been classified as sub-division C-1under Group C for institutional buildings. The NBC gives detailed guidelines for construction materials, general requirements for all buildings, life safety, fire protection, specific occupancy wise requirements and specific requirements for buildings above 15 meters. The code specifies planning and construction features and fire protection features for all occupancies that are necessary to minimize danger to life and property.
However, the period of inspection is not same for all country. The Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) is governed by an 11-member commission representing a cross-section of the fire service industry, including fire departments, city and county management, code councils, the US Department of Defense, and the International Association of Firefighters. The commission meets biennially, to review all of the agencies applying for accredited status.
The Procedure for Clearance from Fire Service is that, the concerned authority shall refer the building plans to the Chief Fire Officer for obtaining clearance in respect of building. The plans shall be clearly marked and indicate the complete fire protection arrangements and the means of access/escape for the proposed building with suitable legend along with standard signs and symbols on the drawings. The Chief Fire Officer shall examine these plans to ensure that they are in accordance with the provisions of fire safety and means of escape as per these by-laws and shall forward two sets of plans duly signed for implementation to the building sanctioning authority. Any deficiencies observed during the course of inspection shall be communicated to the authority for rectification and a copy of the same shall be forwarded to the concerned building owner/ builder.
All buildings depending upon the occupancy use and height shall be protected by fire extinguishers, wet riser, down-comer, automatic sprinkler installation, high/medium velocity water spray etc. Fire fighting facilities like the sprinkler installation effectively limit the spread of fire thereby protect against untenable smoke and fire spread and the risk is reduced to at least by 67 per cent. Fire and smoke check doors restrict the spread of smoke and heat within the area of origin thereby lower the risk by about 33 per cent. Automatic detector cum alarm system alerts the outbreak of fire and helps in early detection and thereby minimizes the response time. Necessary gadgets are to be fitted in each floor/room for fire alarm.
The most common cause of fire in healthcare facilities is from smoking materials. Smoking should never be allowed where oxygen is in use or is stored. Another major fire hazard is faulty or improperly used equipment. All equipment should be checked on a routine schedule. Besides, the critical areas like laboratoris, x-rays, OT, ICU etc where heavy equipment are installed should be well protected and extra precautionary measures should be implemented in such critical areas.
In India, although there are many rules and regulations, codes and standards related to fire safety, these are seldom followed. Therefore, Fire Safety Audit is found to be an effective tool for assessing fire safety standards of an organization or occupancy. It is reasonable to have a fire safety audit in every year. In other words, it is aimed to assess the building for compliance with the National Building Code of India, relevant Indian Standards and the legislations enacted by State Governments and local bodies, on fire prevention, fire protection and life safety measures. A comprehensive fire safety audit can address the inherent fire hazards associated with the day to day activities in an occupancy and recommend measures to reduce the potential fire hazards.
As per the Orissa Fire Service Act, 1993, preventive measures under clause 10(1) mentions, the State Government may, by notification, require the owners or occupiers of premises in any area in which this Act is in force or of any class of premises used in any such area for purposes which, in its opinion, are likely to cause risk of fire, to take such precautions as may be specified in the notification. It is most important for all law abiding citizens and law enforcement agencies to respect the laws to ensure fire safety to evade any fire hazards causing immence loss to life and properties.
(Dr Praharaj teaches in Department of Architecture, College of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar)