KOZHIKODE: The state with poor fire and safety checks and infrastructure for fighting a major fire tragedy could anytime expect an accident similar to the Bhubaneshwar Medical College tragedy that claimed 21 lives, say top officials who conducted a probe there. Department of Fire and Rescue Services, Kerala, deputed two assistant divisional officers to be part of the detailed inquiry in Odisha and compare the situations and steps for similar conditions here.
The officers, Arun Bhaskar (Kozhikode) and T. Rejeesh (Kasargod), completed their investigation in Bhubaneswar from October 25 to 27. They are expected to present their report to Fire and Rescue DGP A. Hemachandran in a week, to immediately install emergency machinery including the sky-lifts. A skylift approximately costs Rs 8 crore.
“We have visited the Odisha Fire and Emergency Services for a comparative study and an enquiry into the major hospital fire at Bhubaneswar. Odisha service is highly equipped for firefighting and disaster management and is much ahead of Kerala with three sky-lifts at Bhubaneswar station with a height of 55 to 72 m for operations in multi-storeyed buildings,” said Mr Arun.
The department had earlier reported that in Kozhikode less than six hospitals comply with the fire and rescue norms and others put the life of ordinary people in danger as they are places where the maximum number of people arrive every day. In the backdrop of the Bhubaneshwar fire, a week-long re-inspection was carried out in hospitals in Kozhikode.
