Hospitals fail to comply with fire safety norms

TIRUCHY: Most of the private hospitals in Tiruchy district fail to comply with the safety norms prescribed by the Department of Fire and Rescue Services, revealing a sick state of affairs. Of the 81 private hospitals in Tiruchy district, 64 are in the city limits, while 20 are in rural areas of the district.each   Notices sent by officials of the department of Fire and Rescue Services, year, to the hospitals, asking them to follow fire safety norms and equip themselves accordingly, goes unheeded. Also, the department is left toothless as it is not a prosecuting body and is left to grapple with its share of daily public cases, staff shortage and other issues. The hospitals should be equipped with fire hydrants that comprise pipeline, adapter, hoses, branch pipes, fire pumps, water sump with a water capacity of one lakh litre, overhead tank with a water capacity of 20,000 litre and sprinklers built in every floor of the hospital, including the basements, at the time of construction itself. Experts point out that if these are not done at the construction stage itself, it will be difficult to incorporate them later.  The hospitals should also be equipped with fire safety devices such as fire-fighting insulators, fire hydrants, sprinklers,  etc. As per the Places of Public Resort Act, a No-Objection Certificate should be secured from the Department of Fire and Rescue Services after submitting a blueprint of the hospital plan before construction. Again, after construction, the hospital management has to apply for a fire licence.However, in most cases, officials of the Fire and Service department are pushed into non-existence as most of the private hospitals are empowered with money and muscle power. The applicant hospital gets all necessary clearances from the civic bodies without consulting the Fire department. This year, the department of Fire and Rescue Services, Tiruchy, has conducted inspections in 20 hospitals. Of the 81 hospitals in the district, 52 hospitals fall under G+1 (ground plus one floor) category, 20 hospitals under G+2, six hospitals under G+3 and three hospitals G+4.  G Elango, Divisional Fire Officer, said, “Any building above 50 feet should take extra cautions, particularly hospitals under G+4 category.” In the district, there are only three hospitals that come under the G+4 category, namely Kavery Medical Centre and Hospital, Tennur, KMC Speciality Hospital, Cantonment and Chennai Medical College Hospital and Research Centre on the Tiruchy-Chennai National Highway (NH 45), that come under Corporation limits. Highly-placed sources alleged that of the three hospitals in the G+4 category, Kavery Medical Centre and Hospital (KMC), Tennur, is a gross violator of basic fire safety norms. The management of the hospital is alleged to have high profile political connections, which, many say, could have helped the hospital management to acquire a single-window clearance from the respective civic body authorities. When contacted, the Divisional Fire Officer, said, “The Fire Services department has been sending notices to KMC, Tennur, for the past three years to comply with the fire safety norms.” However, these seem to have had little bearing on the hospital authorities.