Nghe An: 10 fires occurred in apartment buildings

March 1 fire

Recently, residents living in Tan Thinh apartment building, Le Mao extended street, Vinh Tan ward (Vinh city) were panicked when the electrical system in the technical room on floors 8, 9, and 10 caught fire fiercely.

Mr. Nguyen Khoa Bang, living on the 10th floor of the apartment building, said: At that time, at about 3:57 a.m. on November 6, when I woke up, I smelled smoke and ran out to see that the stairwell area was covered in smoke, so I quickly shouted, knocked on the doors of the neighboring houses, then everyone carried each other and ran...

Hundreds of people panicked and tried to escape when the fire broke out at Tan Thinh apartment building. Photo courtesy of Nguyen Thao

Another resident recalled that a large amount of toxic smoke covered the entire corridor. Accordingly, hundreds of people tried to escape in a state of panic, many people were trapped, fortunately they were rescued promptly by the Fire and Rescue Force, but one fire police officer was still suffocated by smoke.

The recent fire at the Vinaconex 9 apartment building on Lenin Avenue, Nghi Phu Commune (Vinh City) also gave hundreds of residents a fright. The fire broke out at 3:40 a.m. on November 14. The starting point of the fire was determined to be a Kia Morning car parked in the basement. When the fire was discovered, the security guard used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, but could not put it out. Hearing the fire alarm, people shouted to each other and quickly ran out of the house through the stairs in a chaotic situation.

Ms. Nguyen Khanh Ly, a resident here, is still shocked when recalling, "Hearing the alarm, everyone shouted that there was a fire. Many people were so panicked that they ran down and up, not to mention when they heard that the car was on fire in the basement, they were frantic because they were afraid that the fire would spread to the car... The fire was controlled by the authorities not long after, but people still felt uneasy."

Similarly, recently, at around 6:20 p.m. on November 19, a fire broke out in room 807, Sao Nghe apartment building, 28B Nguyen Sy Sach street (Vinh city). Although it was promptly handled by the authorities, so there was no loss of life or property, it caused panic among the residents of the apartment building.

Scenes of some fires in apartment buildings in Vinh City that occurred in November 2019. Photo: Archive

According to statistics from the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department, Nghe An Provincial Police, since the beginning of the year, in addition to 74 forest and vegetation fires, 80 fires have occurred in residential areas, production facilities, warehouses, etc., killing 1 person and causing property damage estimated at over 10 billion VND. Notably, 10 of these were fires in apartment buildings (an increase of 7 cases compared to the same period in 2018).

Many violations in fire prevention work

In a recent inspection, the province's interdisciplinary inspection team pointed out a series of shortcomings in fire prevention and fighting in apartment buildings. Accordingly, regarding fire prevention and fighting records, one apartment building had not yet been inspected and accepted for fire prevention and fighting before being put into use. That was an 18-storey building belonging to the Thanh Vinh Apartment and Office Building Project, Hung Binh Ward (Vinh City). Another apartment building, although having inspected and accepted for fire prevention and fighting, had not yet completed the remediation of some recommendations from the Fire Prevention and Fighting Police; three apartment buildings had not yet established records to monitor and manage fire prevention and fighting activities.

32 apartment buildings have established records to monitor and manage fire prevention and fighting activities but they are not complete according to regulations; 41 apartment buildings have not purchased compulsory fire and explosion insurance; 3 apartment buildings have not developed fire prevention and fighting plans; 2 apartment buildings have not established a grassroots fire prevention and fighting team; 65 apartment buildings have established a fire prevention and fighting team but the number of team members is not enough according to regulations; 3 apartment buildings have not organized propaganda and guidance on fire prevention and fighting for residents...

Checking the fire fighting system operation capacity of the fire fighting force of Vinaconex 9 apartment building. Photo: Huyen Thuong

In addition, there are many problems with fire safety conditions that the apartment buildings have not yet met. Of these, 6 apartment buildings do not have roads and water sources that are not guaranteed for fire trucks to access easily; 25 apartment buildings have damaged or repaired technical systems during use, leading to fire prevention and fire spread prevention for the building not being guaranteed according to regulations; 24 apartment buildings do not ensure conditions for escape routes, escape guidance systems and emergency lighting; 22 apartment buildings have fire alarm systems that do not meet requirements; 7 apartment buildings are not equipped with automatic fire alarm systems because the buildings are not required to be equipped and are apartment buildings built before 2009.

According to the inspection team's conclusion, there is 1 apartment building that is not equipped with a fire-fighting water supply system; 16 apartment buildings have a fire-fighting water supply system that does not meet requirements; some facilities have damaged fire extinguishers that have not been replaced in time and removed from their permanent fire-fighting ready positions; 15 apartment buildings have a stairwell pressurization system that is in operation but does not meet requirements to prevent smoke contamination in the stairwell.

11 apartment buildings have smoke extraction systems in operation but do not meet the requirements for smoke protection for the building. 7 apartment buildings collect garbage using garbage chutes that do not meet safety requirements; 6 apartment buildings have electrical systems for fire prevention that are not connected to a priority source before the main switch...

Strengthen inspection and supervision

Statistics from 2000 to present, due to the urbanization process, in Nghe An province, there have been 72 apartment buildings invested in construction and put into use. Of which, Vinh city has 69 apartment buildings, Cua Lo town has 2 apartment buildings, Dien Chau district has 1 apartment building. These apartment buildings are home to nearly 33,000 people.

Although fires that have occurred in apartment buildings in the area in recent times have been detected and handled promptly, the impact of the fires is not small and has become a haunting memory for many residents whenever mentioned.

According to Colonel Nguyen Ngoc Thanh - Head of the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department of the Provincial Police, along with strictly maintaining a 24/7 combat readiness regime, ensuring timely and effective rescue when a fire or explosion occurs, we will strengthen inspection, supervision, as well as urge the process of overcoming the shortcomings that have been pointed out in apartment buildings.

Regarding this issue, in Official Dispatch No. 18/CD-UBND dated November 8, 2019, on fire prevention and fighting before, during and after the Lunar New Year of Canh Ty; Spring festivals and festivals in 2020, Comrade Le Hong Vinh - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee also directed the Provincial Police to coordinate with agencies and units to strengthen propaganda and guidance for people in the use of gas, electricity, fire prevention and fighting equipment, escape, emergency escape... Accordingly, strictly handle according to regulations for investors and leaders if they deliberately do not implement recommendations on ensuring fire safety.

Fire Prevention and Rescue Police of the Provincial Police organized training for residents in apartment buildings. Photo: Fire Prevention and Rescue Police

Thus, it can be seen that fire prevention work is currently receiving special attention, especially in apartment buildings, where many households live. In addition to the involvement of functional agencies, it is necessary to strengthen training for the residents living in the apartment buildings, so that when an incident occurs, everyone can calmly coordinate to handle the initial situation.

Along with that, focus on on-site fire prevention and fighting forces in apartment buildings, because in reality this force is still lacking and has not received much attention, mainly depending on the security and maintenance forces of the apartment buildings. In addition, the functional sector needs to have a form of strict handling for apartment buildings that do not meet safety conditions for fire prevention and fighting...