From Prajavani 15-07-2008
16 July 2008
08 July 2008
Giant Wheel Mishap: Fire People Rescue All To Safety
Times of IndiaGiant wheel stops, 25 stuck mid-air
7 Jul 2008, 0333 hrs IST,TNN
BANAGALORE: The huge giant wheel started rolling and within seconds, it stopped with three jerks. Over 25 people who were at a height of about 50 feet from the ground started looking downwards excitedly unaware of the fact that they would be suspended mid air for the next one and half hours. The inauguration of the amusement park at the National Consumer Fair in Puttenahalli, JP Nagar 6th phase on Sunday evening, turned into a panic evening when the giant wheel got stuck. The giant wheel has three drive wheels each on both the sides. It had taken just two cycles when one of the drive wheels got punctured. After three or four jerks, the giant wheel came to a screeching halt. Although the wheel was stuck at 6.30 pm, the fire services could arrive on the spot after more than an hour delay due to traffic diversion at the ring road-Puttenahalli junction. "But for the narrow lanes and traffic jams on the road, we could have reached there pretty early," said B G Chengappa, joint director of Fire Services. There was drama in the air as the fire personnel as well as the people on the ground and on the wheel had tense moments. "For a moment, there was panic and screaming. Later, there was a dead silence," said Gautham, one of the organizers. The entire rescue operation took 40 men from fire services and one and half hours. Initially, the fire personnel used their vehicle ladders to bring down the people, but it did not reach the upper carriages. Then they had to use the rope ladders to rescue the people on the top. Cheers rent the air when eight-year-old Raghavi (8), the first one to be brought down, reached the ground safely. She looked very poised and said that she was not scared while on the giant wheel. Mariam from Mumbai, who waited for over an hour for her daughter and granddaughter to be rescued, was too shocked to react. Though the fair opened four days ago, due to rain threat, the organizers decided to postpone the opening of amusement games to Sunday. "The incident took place at around 6.30 pm. We have safety ladders on either side of the wheel, but we did not want to take any chances and decided to call the fire tenders," Goutham said. Meanwhile, Chengappa said they would initiate a probe into the episode.
BANAGALORE: The huge giant wheel started rolling and within seconds, it stopped with three jerks. Over 25 people who were at a height of about 50 feet from the ground started looking downwards excitedly unaware of the fact that they would be suspended mid air for the next one and half hours. The inauguration of the amusement park at the National Consumer Fair in Puttenahalli, JP Nagar 6th phase on Sunday evening, turned into a panic evening when the giant wheel got stuck. The giant wheel has three drive wheels each on both the sides. It had taken just two cycles when one of the drive wheels got punctured. After three or four jerks, the giant wheel came to a screeching halt. Although the wheel was stuck at 6.30 pm, the fire services could arrive on the spot after more than an hour delay due to traffic diversion at the ring road-Puttenahalli junction. "But for the narrow lanes and traffic jams on the road, we could have reached there pretty early," said B G Chengappa, joint director of Fire Services. There was drama in the air as the fire personnel as well as the people on the ground and on the wheel had tense moments. "For a moment, there was panic and screaming. Later, there was a dead silence," said Gautham, one of the organizers. The entire rescue operation took 40 men from fire services and one and half hours. Initially, the fire personnel used their vehicle ladders to bring down the people, but it did not reach the upper carriages. Then they had to use the rope ladders to rescue the people on the top. Cheers rent the air when eight-year-old Raghavi (8), the first one to be brought down, reached the ground safely. She looked very poised and said that she was not scared while on the giant wheel. Mariam from Mumbai, who waited for over an hour for her daughter and granddaughter to be rescued, was too shocked to react. Though the fair opened four days ago, due to rain threat, the organizers decided to postpone the opening of amusement games to Sunday. "The incident took place at around 6.30 pm. We have safety ladders on either side of the wheel, but we did not want to take any chances and decided to call the fire tenders," Goutham said. Meanwhile, Chengappa said they would initiate a probe into the episode.
Cylinder Exploaion Claims Lives of Two Kids
Sunday shocker for children of joy7 Jul 2008, 0335 hrs IST,TNN
BANGALORE: "I want the red balloon, I want green." For the children of Sarakki Garden who went to buy the colourful balloons, Sunday evening turned into a nightmare when the overheated helium cylinder exploded. Fourteen-year-old Nagaraja died on the spot, while 11-year-old Sanjay on the way to NIMHANS. Four other children and the balloon seller sustained severe injuries. When the balloon seller pedalled into J P Nagar 6th Phase, Nagaraja and his friends Sanjay and Manju hopped out of the house to buy the balloons. The balloon man’s cycle had a helium cylinder to fill the balloons. Slowly, more children joined in. The cylinder soon became overheated because of the continuous filling up of the balloons with gas. When the seller poured some water on it to cool it down, the cylinder exploded and Nagaraja collapsed on the spot. The blast ripped his body. Other children - Anjan (12), Manjunath (7), Kushal (5), Vikas (12) - have been admitted to Victoria Hospital. Balloon seller Manoj (17), from Uttar Pradesh, was also severely injured. They all have suffered facial burns. For two-and-a-half-year-old Aman Dubey, it was a lucky escape. He who was playing on the road was attracted to the bright balloons. He escaped with minor injuries in the blast. He was back home after first aid. His father, A V Dubey, was not at home when the incident occurred. Nagaraja was not so lucky, he died on the spot. His parents, Prakash and Dakshayani, are shellshocked. They are unable to digest the truth that their son who went to buy balloons is no more. He was studying in Class VIII in Sarakki Government High School. The other victim, Sanjay, was a Class V student at Oxford School in JP Nagar. His parents Dhruva Kumar and Sujatha, who own a provisions store at Sarakki Garden, are inconsolable. Sanjay had celebrated his 11th birthday just last week. A resident of Sarakki Garden, Mahesh, who was on the spot when the blast occurred at 4.30 pm, explained: "All the children were playing when some of them went to the balloon seller. Suddenly, there was a blast. The impact threw the children some distance away. We rushed to their rescue but could not save Nagaraja. We took the severely injured children to hospital." Area MLA Sathish Reddy visited the place. How did it happen? The residents who witnessed the blast gave different versions on the cause of the blast. One resident said the gas cylinder got overheated and when the seller tried to cool it with water, the cylinder could have exploded due to tremendous pressure. The fact that the balloon cylinder was just below high voltage lines could have also led to the blast.
© 2008 Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd. All rights reserved.
BANGALORE: "I want the red balloon, I want green." For the children of Sarakki Garden who went to buy the colourful balloons, Sunday evening turned into a nightmare when the overheated helium cylinder exploded. Fourteen-year-old Nagaraja died on the spot, while 11-year-old Sanjay on the way to NIMHANS. Four other children and the balloon seller sustained severe injuries. When the balloon seller pedalled into J P Nagar 6th Phase, Nagaraja and his friends Sanjay and Manju hopped out of the house to buy the balloons. The balloon man’s cycle had a helium cylinder to fill the balloons. Slowly, more children joined in. The cylinder soon became overheated because of the continuous filling up of the balloons with gas. When the seller poured some water on it to cool it down, the cylinder exploded and Nagaraja collapsed on the spot. The blast ripped his body. Other children - Anjan (12), Manjunath (7), Kushal (5), Vikas (12) - have been admitted to Victoria Hospital. Balloon seller Manoj (17), from Uttar Pradesh, was also severely injured. They all have suffered facial burns. For two-and-a-half-year-old Aman Dubey, it was a lucky escape. He who was playing on the road was attracted to the bright balloons. He escaped with minor injuries in the blast. He was back home after first aid. His father, A V Dubey, was not at home when the incident occurred. Nagaraja was not so lucky, he died on the spot. His parents, Prakash and Dakshayani, are shellshocked. They are unable to digest the truth that their son who went to buy balloons is no more. He was studying in Class VIII in Sarakki Government High School. The other victim, Sanjay, was a Class V student at Oxford School in JP Nagar. His parents Dhruva Kumar and Sujatha, who own a provisions store at Sarakki Garden, are inconsolable. Sanjay had celebrated his 11th birthday just last week. A resident of Sarakki Garden, Mahesh, who was on the spot when the blast occurred at 4.30 pm, explained: "All the children were playing when some of them went to the balloon seller. Suddenly, there was a blast. The impact threw the children some distance away. We rushed to their rescue but could not save Nagaraja. We took the severely injured children to hospital." Area MLA Sathish Reddy visited the place. How did it happen? The residents who witnessed the blast gave different versions on the cause of the blast. One resident said the gas cylinder got overheated and when the seller tried to cool it with water, the cylinder could have exploded due to tremendous pressure. The fact that the balloon cylinder was just below high voltage lines could have also led to the blast.
© 2008 Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd. All rights reserved.
07 July 2008
06 July 2008
Article on Mysore Fire Brigade in Star of Mysore
FIRE BRIGADE
From Star of Mysore-Online
The Saraswathipuram Fire Station in Mysore is the oldest Fire Station in the State. During the British rule, this Fire Station was under the control of the old Madras region. It is housed in a heritage building built in the year 1942 at Saraswathipuram.
At present, there are three Fire Stations within Mysore city limits at Saraswathipuram, on Bangalore-Mysore Highway in Bannimantap and in the RBI premises. The Station at Saraswathipuram is the main Regional Office covering the districts of not only Mysore but also Mandya, Chamarajanagar and Hassan.
The Fire Station at Saraswathipuram is equipped with two water spraying engines, one tanker to carry water, one to spray mist based on German technology mounted inside a Jeep. There is even an Enfield motorcycle fitted with German fire fighting technology with Carbon dioixide to douse small fires at short notices. Similarly, the Bannimantap Fire Station also consists of a water tender, a multipurpose tender and a water tanker. The RBI Fire Station consists two water tenders. The water tender has the capacity to pump four to five thousands liters of water and the water tanker has the capacity to store 10 thousands of liters of water.
Speaking to Star of Mysore, Regional Fire Officer H.S. Varada Rajan said that they are in the process of acquiring an Advanced Rescue Van which is equipped with essential equipments like steel cutting machine, tree cutting machine and concrete cutter, required during emergencies. He announced that fire fighting personnel do not involve only in dousing fires, but also in saving lives of people who are in danger. Fire fighting personnel are always ready to rescue lives of people in any situation who are in danger, like in collapse of buildings, accidental drowning and other life threatening situations.
Presently, there are 37 firemen working at the Saraswathipuram Fire Station, though the actual requirement is 51, while at the Bannimantap Station, 22 men are working though the actual requirement is 37 persons and in the RBI station 20 firemen are working where the actual need is 27. The remaining vacancies are in the process of being filled up, as the new recruits are currently undergoing training, said Varada Rajan.
Residential quarters have also been provided to these firemen which are in the premises itself. A fireman cannot leave the headquarters without obtaining permission of his higher officer. He should always be prepared not just during his working hours, but also all the day and night when he is present there.
Awareness Programmes:
Fire fighting personnel not only save the lives in critical moments, but also create awareness among the people by holding public demonstrations and giving lectures in schools, colleges, Government offices, Departments, summer camps, NSS camps, NCC camps and to Police trainees.
How to act in fire accidents:
Find, Inform, Restrict, and Extinguish (FIRE) are the keywords to be remembered in a fire accident. Soon after receiving an emergency call, the person in the control room informs the nearest fire station. When the fire station is informed, the fire engine driver immediately takes the fire engine outside and another person will start ringing the alarm bells to alert other fire men to join the fire engine. They always carry the topography of the city and town plan ready on hand to visit the spot. Fire fighting personnel will board the fire engine, after wearing their safety guards like helmets, arm guards, long shoes etc.
While sharing his experience that occurred recently, Varada Rajan said that in KR Nagar four men got down into a manhole and became unconscious. At that time, he luckily happened to be in KR Nagar, when somebody called him and informed about the mishap. He immediately ordered the locals to bring oxygen cylinders from hospitals and release the oxygen into the manhole. They were successful in taking three of them outside, but unfortunately, one man succumbed.
STUDENTS ASSOCIATION OF FIRE EDUCATION (SAFE)
This is a unique program of training the children, it is run only in Karnataka.
Karnataka State Fire Services Department started this program with the main aim of developing fire preventive habits among students by imparting training to the boys and girls (middle and high school students).
This is a unique program of training the children, it is run only in Karnataka.
Karnataka State Fire Services Department started this program with the main aim of developing fire preventive habits among students by imparting training to the boys and girls (middle and high school students).
The modus operandi of SAFE is to identify and adopt a few schools and enrol students as the members of SAFE. The Department arranges free training for the members of SAFE, in their school premises. A day in a week, fortnight or month will be identified to introduce the theory part of the subject 'fire'. With the help of the school teaching staff, free slots will be identified for practical training in identification of portable extinguishers, judicious use of portable extinguishers, methods of summoning fire services, do's and don'ts in an emergency, fire drills, rescue methodology and evacuation drill. This training may last for one year. After this training certificates are issued to the members. There are 16 different schools which are actively participating in this program. A program to train the trainers i.e., school teachers in basic fire prevention, fire fighting and evacuation who in turn train the members of SAFE, is also designed.
Bylaws for SAFE
Members willing to join the association should be bonafide students of a school in the city.
They should remain in the Students' Association of Fire Education for one year. They will be issued a certificate by the Dept. by the end of the year. They should attend the training program once a month regularly in the afternoon after classes in their schools. The training will be conducted by the Karnataka State Fire Services Department's instructors, at the school premises. The head of the educational institution will select a teacher and nominate him/her as 'Fire Warden' of the SAFE, who will take care of the attendance and other matters of the Association. Members of SAFE are not eligible for a certificate if the attendance is less than 75%.
The members of the SAFE will carry a cloth arm band (SAFE) on the right arm. Members should attend functions organised by the Department in respect of fire safety. Members of SAFE may need to participate in the march past during Republic Day and Independence Day parades, and also during Fire Service Week celebrations. (14th April to 20th April). Competition of various types for the members, including inter / intra school of SAFE will be held from time to time, to introduce competitive spirit. Each school shall have a Captain nominated from among the members by the Department called 'SAFE-Captain'. A SAFE-Captain may need to attend meetings convened by Director/Commandant of the Training College/Chief Fire Officer at any convenient location. During the training period, the Department will arrange a visit of the members of SAFE to any one fire station in Bangalore city.
For Fire Emergency Dial - 101
In case of emergency contact fire stations:
Saraswathipuram - 2540970, Bannimantap - 2495101, RBI - 2582103, Mysore Regional Fire Officer (RFO) - 2540116, website: www.karnatakafireservices.gov.in
04 July 2008
Fire in Mahalakshmi racecourse building
The Hindu
Mumbai: A part of the Mahalakshmi racecourse building in Mumbai went up in flames on Thursday evening. There was no casualty. No injuries
“The entire members’ stand on the top floor of the two-storey building on a side of the racecourse ground is gutted. Fortunately, nobody was injured because the stand was locked,” an official of the Royal Western India Turf Club that owns and runs the racecourse, told The Hindu.
He said the fire could have been caused by an electric short circuit. The fire started around 8 p.m. Twelve fire engines and five water tankers were rushed to the spot in response to the call, graded number two. Scores of firemen battled the huge blaze for hours. The Turf Club is virtually empty these days as its 1,200 horses and the staff have shifted to Pune, where the new racing season is to begin shortly.
Mumbai: A part of the Mahalakshmi racecourse building in Mumbai went up in flames on Thursday evening. There was no casualty. No injuries
“The entire members’ stand on the top floor of the two-storey building on a side of the racecourse ground is gutted. Fortunately, nobody was injured because the stand was locked,” an official of the Royal Western India Turf Club that owns and runs the racecourse, told The Hindu.
He said the fire could have been caused by an electric short circuit. The fire started around 8 p.m. Twelve fire engines and five water tankers were rushed to the spot in response to the call, graded number two. Scores of firemen battled the huge blaze for hours. The Turf Club is virtually empty these days as its 1,200 horses and the staff have shifted to Pune, where the new racing season is to begin shortly.
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