Lahore’s fire hazards

[LahoreEstate]

A THIN line separates a hazard from a disaster. A combination of luck, amenable weather and hard work by emergency services prevented a raging fire from turning catastrophic in Lahore on Friday, highlighting just how thin this line can be. Imagine how much destruction a delayed start to the firefight or strong winds or an inefficient rescue operation could have caused. Considering that the warehouse on fire was full of combustible chemicals and was located in a highly populated area, these three factors together or separately could have resulted in a major tragedy. Can we continue taking such chances? If the past is any guide to the future, we should not.



Valuable property and priceless lives have been lost in a number of previous fires at factories and warehouses located much too close to shops and houses. To complain about the failure of the firefighters to turn up on time, or curse the weather or blame a dearth of equipment does little to prevent the ruinous fires that sweep through residential neighbourhoods every now and then. The moot point now is why planners and administrators are unable to implement zoning laws in the cities under their charge. Even if we accept that zoning regulations have been abused for decades, it does not absolve the incumbents of the charge that they have made the situation worse instead of trying to put it right. Instead of issuing perfunctory statements about shifting factories and warehouses away from residential areas in some distant future they need to act in the here and now. Otherwise, the only things standing between people living close to hazardous factories and warehouses and a calamity waiting to happen will be good luck, good weather and alert rescuers. That certainly doesn’t make the people of Lahore any safer.

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn...ds--il--10