Although the capacity of Bangladesh's fire service has increased significantly in the last ten years, it is still not enough compared to the size of the population, Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defense Director Lieutenant Colonel Tajul Islam Chowdhury said.
He made the comments at a program on Sunday titled “Hygiene and Safety” organized by the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) at its Dhaka office.
The director said: “Our government purchased technologically advanced equipment for the fire service. Now we can easily reach 24 storied buildings in case of fire. Moreover, we have enough improvement in the industrial area in terms of fire safety. That is why fire incidents and casualties have reduced in the last ten years.”
However, he also said that they have some limitations as the fire-fighting equipment and human resources are not enough, though the government is trying to improve in that area.
During the program, BGMEA announced that they will inspect all the member factories' fire safety from Sunday to next Saturday. They already formed several zone-wise teams to do the job.
BGMEA also inaugurated their public relation (PR) and communication department at the new BGMEA Complex.
The apex body president Faruque Hassan inaugurated the department, where Senior Journalist and Economic Reporters Forum (ERF) President Mohammad Refayet Ullah Mridha were also present as a special guest.
BGMEA President Faruque Hassan said that the workers' good health and welfare are important to build a sustainable industry and that is why they want to ensure it is hundred percent by 2030.
“In the recent time, several fires occurred in the markets of the capital and experts thought that short-circuit would be the reason for the incident. As RMG and textile factories are using electric-run machinery, we have to be more aware. We asked our members to inspect their machinery as well as electric cable, switch and other equipment,” he added.
Faruque Hassan said that they also asked to always open the emergency exit door and train workers about what to do in case of a fire.
