Islamabad: Fire brigade expansion : CDA fails to upgrade emergency services

[Naveed Yaseen]

By Fazal Sher
ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has failed to upgrade its emergency services such as expansion of fire brigade and establishment of its sub stations in the city to cope with incidents like Marriott Hotel fire and Shaheed-i-Millat Secretariat fire.

After the Marriott Hotel bomb blast, CDA had planed to improve it emergency services to tackle huge fires. It had also initiated some projects including upgradation of fire brigade, construction of CDA disaster management academy at H-11, establishment of fire brigade sub stations, training needs assessment project and urban search and rescue project. So far the authority has failed to execute these projects, an official told Daily Times on Friday.

He said due to lack of trained fire fighters and fire brigade sub-stations CDA fire engines failed to extinguish fire at Marriott Hotel after a suicide bomb blast last year.

He said CDA had acquired new fire engines few years ago, but it had no proper room to park them at the Fire Brigade Headquarters. He said the authority had planned to expand and upgrade the existing fire brigade. According to the plan, the authority would construct fire brigade headquarters building over an area of 38 acres, the official said.

The official said under the plan the CDA would upgrade the fire brigade in such away to establish parking for the new fire vehicles, emergency fire fighting centre, training centre, sport centre, residence for the staff and parade ground. He said the authority’s failure in upgrading its emergency services could result in huge loss.

The official said CDA had purchased 35 vehicles worth of Rs 600 million. Out of these vehicles the authority has received three fire-fighting vehicles including two 68 meters ladder. The new vehicles including two fire ladders that could operate up to 68 meters, two snorkels, 10 tanks capable to store 10,000 liter water, five mini-tanks, two ambulances and four vans would be bought under the project, he said.

He said the town planners had also made another plan under which the CDA would divide the city in to four zones and will establish sub offices of the fire brigade in different sectors including Sector H-14, I-9, G-11 and Hummak. He said CDA had also planned to construct a disaster management academy at H-11 to provide proper tanning to its staff. He said due to CDA high-ups negligence they could not start work on these projects.

He said under the training needs assessment project, they had planned to assess the requirement of different kinds of training. The CDA has also prepared PC-1 worth of Rs 12 million regarding this project.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...009_pg11_1