Majhar Mannan :
A terrible fire broke out in the country again which left the entire nation speechless. At least 49 people, including nine firefighters, were killed in a fire at a BM container depot in Sitakunda. The fire spread quickly due to the chemical explosion in the container. Five investigation committees have been formed to find out the cause of the fire and other issues. The fire at the container depot at Sitakunda in Chittagong is not an ordinary fire. The reason for the horrible appearance was that there were many kinds of chemicals. Such depots usually contain risky containers. Various chemicals are brought for our readymade garments, food or pharmaceuticals. Chemicals are also kept there for export. It contains toxic, combustible or explosive hazardous chemicals. It is difficult to say from which specific chemical the fire started. But after the fire started, the explosion went out of the control of the fire service at one stage. The depot in Sitakunda where the fire broke out is a joint venture between a local and a foreign company. Naturally, their fire safety was supposed to be adequate. But from what we have seen in newspapers and on television, there are many flaws in the depot’s firefighting system. We saw such a big accident because we could not control the fire in the initial stage. Many people have died. Many people have been burnt. Many were injured. The condition of many of them is critical. We found out initially that there were containers of hydrogen peroxide.
Hydrogen peroxide is not combustible under normal conditions. It acts as an oxidizing or flammable chemical. If there is hydrogen peroxide somewhere, that fire is very difficult to control. This is because the supply of oxygen comes from hydrogen peroxide. That is why the intensity of the fire was so high. Again, hydrogen peroxide has a specific boiling point. The explosion did not occur as soon as the fire started. It takes quite a while to get to the point. If there was a fire safety system in the depot, it would have been possible to control the fire within that time. It is certain that there were many weaknesses in the fire safety system at the depot. That is why the fire went out of control. Emergency measures were not taken immediately after the fire broke out. The workers and others were not brought out as they should have been. Curious crowds gathered there, took pictures, made videos, and the depot employees also stood and watched. That is why there have been so many casualties. If the depot had adequate firefighting system, the fire could have been brought under control at the outset. If that had been done, such a big accident would not have happened. Last year the death of more than 50 people in the horrific fire at Rupganj in Narayanganj was a very heartbreaking and tragic event. Fire accidents are nothing new in Bangladesh and many people die every year in Bangladesh due to fire accidents and such fires are frequent in various factories. However, such fires continue to occur and more than 70 people were killed and huge financial losses were incurred in the horrific fire at Chawkbazar in Dhaka. A catastrophic fire in Dhaka’s Nimtali in 2010 killed 124 people and caused extensive property damage. Experts believe that despite repeated fire incidents, no effective and permanent measures can be taken to prevent them. 600 workers died in fires in the country since 2006 and 117 workers died in a devastating fire at Tazreen Fashion in 2012. Experts say that fire safety equipment is not installed in many buildings and if it is installed somewhere, it is not maintained properly, which is why such accidents often occur. Experts also say that following the National Building Code should be made mandatory for fire safety. Building construction laws and regulations are often not followed properly and building construction fire regulations are not followed properly which can lead to such incidents.
The fire service believes that such accidents are exacerbated by the misplacement of combustible materials in buildings. Fire service officials believe that the inspection department and local administration need to regularly monitor the security arrangements inside the factories, electricity connections, gas connections and combustible materials. According to the Bangladesh Institute of Labor Studies, the main reason for the recurrence of such fires is the lack of appropriate punishment for the accused. Factory authorities are often reluctant to improve firefighting systems and cause accidents. This organization believes that fire incidents should be investigated impartially and the perpetrators should be brought to justice. According to Article 121 of the ILO Convention, it is necessary to provide adequate compensation and ensure the well-being and future safety of injured workers. However, after a large fire, there is a lot of noise for a few days, but in the womb of time it gradually disappears. Experts believe that there is not enough initiative to regularly monitor the factories and the necessary policies and guidelines are needed. There should be a fair and impartial investigation to prevent such accidents and adequate steps should be taken as per the investigation report otherwise it will be repeated.
(Majhar Mannan is Assistant Professor, B A F Shaheen College Kurmitola, Dhaka Cantonment).
