There are no fire extinguishing equipment in public hospitals

KARACHI:

Patients being treated at the hospital hope for a speedy recovery and a safe return home. However, while the former is likely given the availability of qualified physicians, the likelihood of the latter occurring is questionable given the disastrous state of fire-fighting mechanisms in most public health facilities.

Major government hospitals and primary health centers across the city, including Jinnah Hospital, Civil Hospital and Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, are reported to have no effective fire-fighting facilities, fire extinguishers, emergency exits, fire buckets and fire alarm system.

Saeed Jadoon, an expert in the field of rescue and fire services, told The Express Tribune that according to the principles of fire fighting, it is important for hospitals to have fire and rescue services as oxygen reserves can trigger the explosion of a deadly fire.

“When fire comes into contact with oxygen, it spreads faster. Therefore, fire safety services should be mandatory in hospital buildings along with the posting of signage to indicate emergency exit routes. Additionally, electrical systems in hospitals need to be upgraded as most fires in hospitals occur due to short circuits. Apart from this, all hospitals should also have large water storage tanks,” urged Jadoon.

Jadoon also recommended placing patients with limited mobility on the ground floor so that if a fire breaks out, they can be safely rescued through emergency routes. “Big hospitals should also have a helipad so that patients can be rescued immediately. Unfortunately, there are no fire safety and rescue measures in public hospitals in Karachi. For this reason, when fires occur, they are difficult to control,” Jadoon added.

According to data received from government hospitals in Karachi, 15 incidents of fire were reported in the last two years, one of which occurred at the Sindh Government Hospital in Liaquatabad due to a short circuit, which claimed the lives of five people.

“Even after this incident, the health authorities have not learned any lesson. Even when hospitals have fire extinguishers, there are no staff to use them, and in other cases, fire extinguishers expire,” commented Jadoon.

Commenting on the issue, officials from the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) fire service confirmed that government hospitals and health centers in Karachi do not have fire fighting equipment. “Therefore, KMC provides its services in case of fire emergencies. However, these hospitals are located in congested areas with heavy traffic, making it difficult for fire crews to reach there,” said a KMC official.

Jinnah Hospital and Civil Hospital officials said their facilities are equipped with fire extinguishers in all departments and staff are also undergoing gradual training as per the guidelines of the Sindh Health Department.

In contrast, officials from Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, Sindh Government Hospital Liaquatabad and Sindh Government Hospital Saudabad confirmed that fire safety measures at their hospitals were meager.

“During the monsoon, water entering power lines leads to short circuit incidents. After the fire at the Sindh Government Hospital in Liaquatabad in February 2024, the Sindh Health Department issued orders to the heads of all hospitals. Following this, fire extinguishers were also installed in our hospital and most of the hospital staff were trained by experts to use these devices,” said Dr Pir Ghulam Nabi Shah Jilani, medical superintendent of Sindh Government Hospital in Saudabad. .

On the other hand, Sindh Health Department officials said that fire extinguishers are being gradually installed in government hospitals in Karachi and that collaboration with relevant agencies is also being sought to improve the system.