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Sunday, November 19, 1972
He said that during 1971-72, over 150,000 such inspections were made
in different types of premises many of which were used for industrial undertakings.
A lot of these resulted in court prosecutions.
All building plans must be submitted to the New Projects Section of
the Bureau for scrutiny, and construction work can only begin if the fire
protection and fire fighting facilities are considered adequate.
Very often, however, fires are indirectly caused or aggravated not so
much by the lay-out of the premises but by the improper use of the building,
the spokesman added,
Domestic buildings are not suitable for use as factories or workshops,
and in industrial buildings, the internal fire resisting partitions should only
be altered or removed if prior permission has been given by the Building Authority.
More often than not due to a shortage of usable space or a complete
failure to provide storage areas, goods and raw materials are stacked in corridors,
staircases, smoke lobbies and exite, in some cases close to electrical equipment.
He said this malpractice leads to the setting up of obvious death
traps, but still it continues either because of total ignorance or the complete
disregard for the safety of human lives.
"Now is the time for management to take a long hard look at their
fire protection and prevention failings and to seek advice from the Fire
Prevention Bureau on H-222101. The information is free and who knows tomorrow
it may save a life, an export order or even the business," the spokesman concluded.
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