6-yr plan to put an end to home fires in UAE
abu dhabi — A major fires safety plan was launched on Wednesday to provide end-to-end fire safety solutions to every villa in the UAE, according to authorities.
Aimed at putting an end to home fires in the country, Lieutenant General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior (MoI), unveiled and initiative ‘Hassantuk for Villas,’ which will cover 400,000 homes across the country in six years.
The inauguration followed the signing of an agreement between the MOI and etisalat in June this year to supply, instal and maintain smart fire alarm systems in homes across the country.
Hassantuk, which translates to ’Protect You’ in Arabic, optimises the UAE’s key response to fire and emergency alerts through a 24/7 connected fire alarm system, by utilising advanced artificial intelligence (AI) smart technologies to monitor and report fire.
Captain Humaid Abdullah Al Ali, head of advisory experts office and project manager of Hassantuk for Villas, told Khaleej Times: “Since June, 1,200 homes have the smart system implemented, which includes old and new villas.
“We believe we will achieve an incredible result and we have a road map to continue to develop and advance the project. We are not stopping here, because we aim to achieve the best in the future.”
He said the alarm system immediately alerts the people in the house and the civil defence control room.
“This system will help us respond faster, thus minimising the number of deaths. Statistics reveal that most deaths in residential fires were caused by smoke, not by the fire.”
Just last week, the country mourned eight Emiratis, including a one-year-old baby, who tragically lost their lives in a house fire in Baniyas.
Investigations revealed that electrical short circuit caused the fire, while they were asleep. The victims died from smoke inhalation during their sleep, revealed authorities.
“We are not telling people to fight the fire, we are telling them to be alert when there is danger,” said Captain Al Ali.
He said that the aim of the sys-
tem is to cut response time from the aspect of the civil defence, as well as the aspect of those living inside the house. “If the parents are sleeping on the ground floor and their children are on the first floor, how long will it take for them to reach the kids? The smoke may reach the children before the parents can save them,” he warned.
Captain Al Ali said the response time now for the civil defence is between four-six minutes. However, the revolutionary system will help cut this time, as “each second counts”. “If the response time is four minutes, we want to cut it to three minutes.”
Major General Jaseem Mohammed Al Marzouqi, general commander of civil defence, said that the MOI is working diligently to implement the fire monitoring system, as per the government directives, to link up residential homes to the civil defence control rooms.
He added that advanced fire monitoring and safety systems for residential properties are also being initiated.
Saleh Abdullah Al Abdooli, CEO Etisalat Group, said the initiative
works hand-in-hand with UAE’s Vision 2021 of making the UAE one of the safest countries in the world.
“Together with the MOI, we aim to provide the highest levels of protection standards by complying with international norms, guidelines and procedures in firefighting and rescue operations.”
This system will help us respond faster, thus minimising number of deaths. We are not telling people to fight the fire, we are telling them to be alert when there is danger.” Capt. Humaid Abdullah Al Ali,
project manager, Hassantuk for Villas