Kochi: Sophisticated Skylift for fire brigade by year-end

Kochi: The long-pending demand of the Kerala Fire and Rescue Services to get sophisticated fire-fighting equipment to deal with fire emergencies in high-rise buildings will be met soon.

The fire brigade will be equipped with Skylift that can be used to reach up to a height of 60 metres by the year-end.

“We’ve been allotted Rs 28 crore for the purchase of most advanced fire-fighting equipment, including the Bronto Skylift having turn-table ladders. The tendering process has reached half-way stage. We expect to receive the fire-fighting vehicle by this year-end,” R. Prasad, director (technical) told DC.

The department had first put forward the demand for Skylift, costing Rs 4 crore per vehicle, back in 2016. Though a high-level technical committee awarded the tender, it was entangled in legal issues and finally the project was dropped. This even as most states, including Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, already have the facility.

The authorities are planning to deploy the Skylift in the commercial capital, thanks to numerous high-rise buildings.

The annual fire incidents in Ernakulam region are on the rise. The 26 fire stations in the region recorded over 2, 200 ‘firecalls’ last year.

“The fire incidents have been increasing in the last several years. The high-rise buildings in the city have now more than doubled in the last few years. There is an urgent need to acquire a fire-fighting vehicle that could reach heights of more than 50 metres,” said a senior fire official.

The need for a Skylift was badly felt during the massive operation to douse a major fire that engulfed a six-storey building at Kalathiparambu road in the heart of the city on Wednesday.

“We scaled over the nearby building and pumped water into the water tank there before operating the high jet pressure pumps to douse the flames. Also we brought in JCBs and the personnel sprayed the foam after scaling over it,” the officer said.