Are corporate offices conducting enough fire drills?

Last year on 26 October, Taki Uddin Fitu first noticed the smoke at around 4:45 in the afternoon. 

He was in his office on the ninth floor of Khawaja Tower in Mohakhali. It was not just another commercial building in Dhaka – it hosted two separate data centres, each connected to 10-12 International Internet Gateways (IEG), serving as service providers for hundreds of Internet Service Providers (ISP). 

Startled by the smoke and screams around him, he grabbed his laptop and hurried down the stairs. Around 50-60 of his colleagues were also descending at the same time. 

As they climbed down, the smoke began to intensify, engulfing almost everything around them and instilling a fear of the unimaginable. 

"Honestly speaking, I was frightened to the core. Everyone wants a normal death; no one wants to be charred to death," said Taki Uddin, while speaking to TBS from the ground floor of the building last week. 

But the unthinkable did happen to his colleague Hasna Hena as she was trying to climb down using a rope.   

The memories still haunt Taki as he recalled the day three people died and 10 were injured by the fire in Khawaja Tower.  

After the tragedy, the fire service authority said that some fire extinguishers were there, but the facility lacked a proper safety plan. The building also lacked an automatic fire extinguishing system. 

The building authority claimed that now they have fire extinguishers and an automatic fire extinguishing system. However, building manager Tipu Sultan told TBS that they are yet to implement the 'fire plan' recommended by the fire service guideline, although the building is in operation again. 

Not long ago, in March 2019, the FR Tower fire in Banani, less than two kilometres from Khawaja Tower, claimed 25 lives and injured over 70 people. And like these, hundreds of fires are reported in Dhaka every year, which results in casualties, injuries and property damage. 

Although implementing the provisions of the building code to ensure fire safety is paramount, fire drills or evacuation training also play a significant role in saving lives during fire incidents. However, corporate offices in Dhaka are failing to provide these for their employees. 

There are thousands of offices in Dhaka city. But fire service officials we interviewed said that not even 2% of the offices in Dhaka conduct fire training for their employees. As a result, most of them don't have an idea on how to act during a fire emergency. 

"Most fires start on a small scale. But whether small or large, people immediately panic and try to escape it. Those with training understand how they can tackle the fire or extinguish it when it has not spread," said Enayet Hossain, assistant director at Fire Service and Civil Defence department and the Head of Fire Safety Cell. 

"Most people don't even have the contact number of the fire service department. If you call 999, it will take around five minutes to reach the local fire service office, as they will get all your information and forward it to us, all of which take time. But when we train the employees, our officials ensure that local fire service contact numbers are saved by them," he said. 

However, unlike Dhaka city, fire drills or training are very common in the industrial areas in Ashulia due to RSC (RMG Sustainability Council) regulations. 

"There was a time when 200-250 garments caught fire but now, fire incidents have been brought down to 30-40. This happened because of training and awareness activities. When you know the type of the fire, you know how to extinguish it as well," Enayet added. 

We kept in contact with the Fire Safety Cell department for around two months to accompany them during a fire training in Dhaka in person. Unfortunately, they didn't get a training request from any office during this time. 

So, last week, we visited one of the economic zones in Ganakbari, Savar to see a training session. 

What happens during these training sessions?

When we reached Styrax Fashions Ltd in Ganakbari, fire service officer Aliullah was teaching RMG workers the different types of fires and how to extinguish them accordingly. 

"If the fire is caused by metal equipment, and you use water [to douse it], it will create more scope for oxygen to get into the fire. Because when you pour water, the hydrogen and oxygen divides, generating more oxygen. And more oxygen means more fire," he said. 

The topic may sound technical but the audience looked engaged with the discussion. Aliullah was also cracking jokes in between, making the workers burst out in laughter. 

The different types of extinguishers include water, foam, dry power and carbon dioxide, which are separately applied to fires originating from solids (wood, paper, cloth etc), flammable liquid, flammable gases, electric equipment, cooking oil etc. 

He also demonstrated how to handle a fire extinguisher: First you have to pull it, aim for the target, then squeeze the button, and sweep the area with the nozzle. Since the cylinder will be emptied in 20 seconds, you have to get as close to the fire as possible. 

Pranab Chowdhury of the fire service department was in-charge of the training operation at the Styrax Fashions Ltd that day. He said there were around 40 participants. 

"We emphasise that at least 18-20% of the workforce are training, although ideally it should be 25%," he told TBS. 

During the break, we asked Rupa, one of the participants, if she had such training before. 

"I have been working in garments for over 20 years but this is the first time that I had such training," she said. After the training, she now feels at ease knowing that during a fire emergency she might be able to survive.  

Aminul Islam, another worker who joined the garment industry fairly recently, said that this training gives him confidence because the knowledge he gathered from it will not only help him at work but also at home. 

As the class and practical sessions went on, the attendees learned first-hand how to evacuate, put out a fire and certain things they should keep in mind in case of emergencies. 

"No matter what, always bend down and proceed to evacuate following the isle marks," Pranab said in his lecture. "If you can, shut the door of the room where the fire is spreading because it reduces the oxygen flow to the room." 

Aliullah explained why they should cover their mouth and face so their 'shashnali' (trachea) is not burned. He also explained why they should walk straight, feeling the walls with their hands, in case they cannot see the door because of dense smoke.

After the class, when we mentioned how we didn't get to see a drill in Dhaka city even after waiting for two months, Aliullah said, "Corporates care a lot about security and spend a lot of money on it, but not so much on the safety of the workers." 

Why don't corporations take fire drills seriously? 

There is a fee of around Tk10,000-Tk15,000 for the fire drill/training, but the main issue is you have to attend it for two days, and corporations don't want to spend this time, said Enayet Hossain of the Fire Safety Cell. 

He said that there are some hotels in the city who conduct training each year, along with some reputed organisations. But the majority of the offices don't. 

"While renewing their licences, it is encouraged that at least 25% of the employees are fire trained. There are hundreds of offices in these areas [Gulshan and Banani] but not even 2% take the fire training," he said. 

When asked why they cannot make the drills obligatory for offices, he said that in that case, there will be a manpower crisis in the department, which needs to be sorted first. 

"It is not like anyone can conduct the training. We build a structure around how the class will be taken and how to get the attention of the participants. We don't have many officers who can conduct classes for corporate officials," he said. 

Brig Gen Ali Ahmed Khan (Retd), Former Director General of the Fire Service Department, also emphasised that the capacity of the fire service department should be increased. But on the issue of having insufficient manpower for conducting training/drills, he didn't agree with Enayet. 

"These are managed through third parties in other countries. You could certify 10-20 firms and conduct these operations with them," he said. 

On the question of why the offices don't approach the fire department for the training, Ali Ahmed Khan said there should be a regulatory body with magisterial power to enforce this on the offices. 

"It is quite simple. If there is no compulsion or a regulatory body [it won't work]. There is mention of my regulatory power on paper, but physically, I don't have a magistrate, and so there is no compulsion," he said. 

"The people who commit crimes or engage in illegal activities come to their senses if there are repercussions or penalties. All the countries' fire departments have regulatory bodies and people fear them; but not in ours. At the end of the day, you need a strong will of the government." 

"If these trainings are regularly carried out, casualties will be minimised and fire safety will be enhanced," he added.