Bomba chief reminds of fire safety procedures
MIRI: If any lesson is to be learnt from the fire outbreak at Beautiful Jade Centre here last Friday, it is the fire hazard and risks that the public need to know but were often ignored or neglected.
Zone 6 Fire and Rescue Department’ s senior fire superintendent II Ahmad Nizam Sapaiee revealed that many premises here, especially old buildings, are prone to fire risk due to blocked emergency exit, improper renovation and unsafe electrical wiring.
“We noticed that in a lot of cases, these buildings are either overly renovated to the extent of blocking the emergency exit and escape route (like window and back door) which poses a great risk to the tenants staying there.
“Another issue is that some of the tenants even improperly renovated the premises with uncertified electrical wiring and gas stove that could cause hazard at the time of emergency,” Nizam told reporters after a meeting with the shop house owners yesterday.
On these matters, Nizam emphasised that there is a dire need to hold awareness talks to brief members of the public on the do’s and don’ts so that they could save themselves during fire outbreak.
When asked on the old buildings that do not have firewall, Nizam said that it was a bit difficult to detail up which building did not comply as they were built over 40 years ago and more importantly, at the time of the construction the Sarawak Building Ordinance 1994 was yet to be amended.
“Of course, to rebuild the premises after the fire, these buildings must follow the ordinance and Bomba will make sure that these requirements are complied with.”
It is said that during the incident, when fire and rescue personnel arrived at the venue, the fire at the third floor had already spread from the first premises to the sixth premises.
“The firewall structure works as a barrier to hold the fire up to two hours and during the twohour window, the fire should be able to be contained and prevented from affecting other premises. However, this unfortunate incident saw more damages and loss due to the improper firewall structure,” he pointed out.
When asked on the unfortunate death of one of the victims during the fire, Nizam advised tenants to know the escape routes during emergency.
“They must know where the front and back door are, the route of escape that exist with the building plan. For those who have door and window grill, occupants must know where the keys to the locked grills are, be aware of the hazard and fire risk. Be aware that fire happens anytime and anywhere, so there is a need to learn all these,” he advised.
The meeting was also attended by Piasau assemblyman Datuk Sebastian Ting, Deputy Resident of Miri Abdul Aziz Yusuff, head of Miri Police Station ASP Nagulan Maniam; State Fire and Rescue Department assistant director ( forensic) Amran Jusoh, Miri Fire and Rescue Station chief Ali Bema, Sarawak Energy Berhad ( SEB) Northern Region manager Ir Tan Joo Kok and MCC’s assistant secretary to city secretary Rizal Zakaria.
It was estimated that about RM600,000 was lost in the fire.
During the meeting, Ting sought assistance from SEB to speed up the electrical wiring of the affected buildings so that tenants and shop owners could get back to their daily routine.
“So far, water supply is not an issue but electricity, as the amenity is vital in our day-today routine. It is best for SEB to help arrange several potential contractors, giving the owners options to choose electrical contractors of their choice,” he said.
Meanwhile, The Borneo Post spoke to one of the tenants, who was busy tidying up her shop, on how she felt after the fire.
“It is not only about the loss of money, the Chinese New Year is here and such an unfortunate thing happened to us and many others who work and/or stay here. Therefore, we are trying to salvage what can be saved,” the lady who wished to remain anonymous said.
She added that she was overwhelmed by the incident but at the same time was glad that none of her family members and workers were hurt despite the huge loss.