Increasing incidents of fire disasters reported across the country in recent times should serve as a fresh impetus for the mounting of safeguards against the phenomenon, both at home and in public places. The fact that fire outbreaks have been occurring while it has been raining almost unceasingly also presages worsening cases as the rainy season gradually gives way to the dry and dusty Harmattan season that is usually more conducive to fire outbreaks.
Within the last two weeks, Nigerians have been inundated with reports of fire wreaking havoc across the country, including the sad incident in which an entire family was wiped out on Monday in Benue State. In that tragic incident, a Permanent Secretary in the state’s Ministry of Science and Technology, his pregnant wife and two children met their untimely demise as their house was completely razed to the ground. Before it was tamed, the inferno had extended its rage to three other houses, although no lives were lost there.
Earlier, Lagos, the commercial heartbeat of the country, had been rocked by three fire incidents that took place almost simultaneously at different parts of the city. Two incident affected markets while the other occurred at a confectionary company. Although the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, the Lagos State Fire Service and other relevant agencies rallied to put off the fire, relief only came after a great deal of damage had been done.
Fire outbreaks have also been reported in neighbouring Ogun State, where three buildings were gutted at the Oke Ikotu Road in Abeokuta, the state capital, last week. According to reports, it all started in one house and quickly spread to two other buildings before it was brought under control three hours later by battling fire fighters.
It has indeed been a season of fires as reports have also captured loss of lives in the explosion of tankers laden with petrol in different parts of the country, especially in Onitsha, Anambra State and in Ogun State. Even the dead have not been spared by the blaze as reports indicate that 12 corpses were burnt when the morgue of the Anatomy Department of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, went up in flames on Tuesday. Last Wednesday, fire destroyed shops and buildings at Iju-Ishaga, a Lagos suburb.
There is no doubt that fire disasters have become inevitable occurrences that have to be dealt with from time to time. In many parts of the world, wildfires have been raging, causing extensive damage, especially in places like California in the United States, the Amazon Forest in Brazil, the fringes of Sydney in Australia and the rainforest of Africa. It has reached a stage where questions are being legitimately raised as to whether the world is literally on fire.
But when fires occur, people should be well equipped in terms of knowledge and materials to be able to deal with them. Although culpability in many fire incidents might not be readily determined, yet many unfortunate incidents occur out of the carelessness and negligence of people. For instance, in cases of power upsurge, the residents might not be directly at fault. Yet, some of the fire disasters could have been prevented if the source of power had been switched off when lights were not in use.
Another important reason for house fires is the poor quality of building materials. In Nigeria, the use of substandard cables has often led to many fire incidents, resulting in the loss of lives and property. Besides, there are also issues such as going to sleep after plugging electrical appliances. Others include overloading of circuits and leaving pots on fire unattended.
Massive public enlightenment programmes should be launched by the federal and state authorities on fire outbreak prevention and control. While prevention is very important, and is better than cure, as it is often said, it is also imperative to prepare for an appropriate response whenever there is a fire outbreak. Living in a house without fire extinguishers is no longer an option. Although putting a call through to emergency responders is of utmost importance, yet, one should be able to use fire extinguishers, where possible, to fight off the fire, pending the arrival of the fire fighters.
The choice of building materials should also be made with the possibility of fire outbreak in mind. When the London Grenfell Tower fire of June 2017 started, it did not take time before the entire 24 storeys were engulfed. Investigations later revealed that it was the combustible building materials used in its construction that helped to turn the building into a “flaming coffin” which claimed about 80 lives. So, in building construction, steps should be taken to choose non-combustible materials. In the case of cables, it has been confirmed that those made in Nigeria meet high standards but the lax regulation that allows substandard cables to enter the country should give way to effective enforcement.
It is also important that the siting of buildings should comply with town planning rules. During the market fire in Lagos, an official of the state fire service complained of difficulty in getting to the scene. “We have been able to curtail the fire, but the terrain is difficult as we have conjoined buildings with narrow roads and crowd control is challenging,” Amodu Shakiru said. Similarly, in Onitsha, the fire fighters said they were pelted with stones on their way to fight a recent fire incident, after managing to navigate the usual traffic snarl for which the city is noted. Buildings should be located where they can be easily accessed in times of emergency.
Besides, states should not take the issue of fire fighting as an afterthought, but as an integral part of the necessities of town planning. Not only should the equipment be available and functional, the fire fighters themselves have to be in a state of physical and mental fitness to carry out their jobs. In the past, people had watched helplessly as their life earnings went up in flames just because the fire fighters got to the scene and there was no water to confront the fire. This has to change.
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