electricity in the area when the fire erupted.
However, officials of the K-Electric and Sui Southern Gas Company duly came and cut off power and gas connections.
Siddiqi takes notice
Karachi commissioner Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqi took serious notice of the lapses of KMC’s fire brigade department and wrote a letter to Administrator Saqib Ahmed Soomro.
Talking to The News on Monday after visiting the factory on directives of the Sindh chief minister, he expressed concern over how the fire department did not work efficiently to put out the third-level blaze.
He expressed surprise that even though all fire tenders were called from across the city, they were unable to handle douse the blaze.
In his letter to the KMC administrator, the commissioner asked him about all the snorkels not being in working condition. He also directed the KMC administrator to acquire foam for the fire tenders.
He requested the administrator that utmost importance must be given to fire-fighting capacities of for the sake of public safety.
The commissioner also took notice of the lapses in KPT’s fire fighting department and wrote to its chairman about getting its snorkel and other equipment repaired.
Meanwhile, the Sindh chief minister and governor also expressed their concerns and stressed efficient maintenance of the fire fighting equipment.
Industrialists seek attention
Industrialists’ concerns
The Site Association of Industries, in October and November last year, had written letters to the Sindh chief minister, commissioner Karachi and KMC authorities to bring to their notice the ‘pathetic’ condition of Site fire station.
In his letter written to the commissioner Karachi Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui, dated October 1, 2014, the association chairman Jawed Bilwani highlighted the dilapidated state of the Site fire station.
He had apprised the commissioner about the unavailability of diesel for fire tenders and the absence of a single snorkel in an industrial area.
He had pointed out that around 3,500 industries were situated in the area however, the fire station lacked basic equipment and facilities to function. The missing facilities include lack of drivers, water, adequate tools, absence of staff and the empty 50,000-gallon tank at the fire station.
In another letter, written on November 7 to the chief minister, Bilwani had also drawn his attention to the missing facilities at the fire station.
He had pointed out that the local fire station only had four fire tenders and out of them only one was in working condition.
In another letter, the association chairman had called for an independent inspection of the fire station.
All the letters were also forwarded to and received by KMC’s senior director of municipal services Masood Alam and the incharge of Site fire station.