Tackle fire outbreaks with urgency, rigour
The country is back to the menace of destructive fire outbreaks. Property that local leaders estimate to be worth Shs50 million was gutted at Anaka Hospital on Monday.
On January 8, plumes of black smoke billowed from Ministry of Health headquarters which caught fire on a Sunday afternoon. Police sealed it off on a week day as a crime scene, paralysing service delivery, and investigators are yet to release their findings or say anything about the cause.
Tales of babies dying in fire accidents or factories and residential buildings being toppled, beside unreported cases, demonstrate the incalculable cost of infernos to lives and property in this country.
The disconcerting truth, which feels like sand grind on the teeth, is that the recent fire outbreaks found the affected premises less prepared to tackle it. And Police Fire Brigade responded at snail speed. This ill-preparation is a national tragedy and citizens and government must wake up from the voluntary sedation.
We are alarmed even more because there have been appalling precedents; the October 2016 Jinja Pier market fire, which took up in smoke the fortunes of about 3,500 vendors; the burning of an FM radio station and a lawmaker’s office in Lira; and, Satellite Beach hangout in Mukono Town going up in flames.
It is troubling that reports of government-sanctioned inquests into fire incidents at schools, the Kasubi Tombs and St Balikuddembe Market, commonly called Owino, have been hidden from the public. We demand that those findings must be made public so that the country knows the truth, the citizens pick lessons and avoid a repeat of the fire disasters.
But there are commonsense things we must do as Ugandans to either prevent fire accidents or minimise the destruction. We are aware some arsonists start fires in offices to destroy incriminating evidence or to take revenge.
All human settlements must be planned and built with passage for fire tenders; high pressure water points must be set up for the trucks to refill; every work place must have fire extinguishers on site, with staff competent in their use; and, employers must carry out regular fire drills to test the level of preparedness and response.
We also stand for a country where police and private fire fighters, instead of only responding to fire outbreaks, engage with and sensitise communities on prevention. It is noble public service as is saving lives.
The government should work with educational institutions and faith-based organisations, to cascade the seminal message of avoiding fire disasters, especially this dry season. This must be instructive to save lives and economic resources.
The issue: Fire outbreaks.
Our view: The government should work with educational institutions and faith-based organisations, to cascade the seminal message of avoiding fire disasters, especially this dry season. This must be instructive to save lives and economic resources.
