Fire prevention experience from Hoang Mai district: The core is people with skills and equipment

To implement this requirement, recently, the government, police force and thousands of apartment owners and business owners in Hoang Mai district have made efforts to implement many solutions to promptly complete fire safety requirements.

Thinh Liet ward authorities inspect fire prevention and fighting work at a household with a room for rent. Photo: Hien Thu

Focus on inspection and propaganda

Information from Hoang Mai district said that the review work has been deployed synchronously in 14 wards of the district.

Accordingly, the whole district has 74,414 households with houses; 5,766 households have houses combined with production and business. The district has established 1,402 inter-family fire safety teams, 1,453 public fire stations with 2,906 fire extinguishers and is continuing to install 1,161 more public fire stations.

The forces organized 14 propaganda classes, disseminating knowledge and skills on fire prevention and fighting for 100% of households with houses combined with production and business and 273 propaganda classes for 100% of households with houses. Basically, households have equipped themselves with portable fire extinguishers, rudimentary demolition tools, 98% of households have opened a second escape route and this rate in households combining production and business is 100% .

Regarding the subjects subject to Directive No. 19/CT-TTg, the authorities inspected 3,098 boarding houses, 19 mini-apartments, and 2,817 houses combining production and business with high risk of fire and explosion, thereby pointing out limitations and requiring households to overcome them.

Hoang Liet Ward propagates fire prevention and fighting work to people in many apartment buildings.
Photo: PV

However, the basic investigation and review of combined production and business houses of the wards are not yet absolutely accurate, leading to missing households that need to be reviewed and mobilized to equip with fire extinguishers, demolition tools as well as open a second escape route; not ensuring that 100% of combined production and business households are mobilized to participate in the Fire Prevention and Fighting Safety Joint Household Team...

Raising awareness of people, especially landlords

With a large area, high population density, and many residential areas, houses combined with business..., Hoang Mai district determines that the top priority in fire prevention and fighting work is to accompany, guide, and raise awareness for people, not simply to inspect and punish.

In Thinh Liet ward, Ms. Nguyen Thi Tinh's house, in alley 61, lane 88 Thinh Liet, is a pioneer in investing in fire prevention and fighting equipment right from the construction of a multi-storey house for rent. On the first floor, she installed an automatic fire suppression system and equipped foam fire extinguishers on each floor. Ms. Tinh also cares about raising awareness of fire prevention and fighting for tenants by sending Zalo videos twice a month instructing on fire prevention and fighting skills.

Propaganda conference on Directive No. 19/CT-TTg in Dinh Cong ward. Photo: PV

Major Tran Duc Hoa, Thinh Liet Ward Police, shared: “When we know which households are planning to build houses and businesses, we often invite them to households that have done a good job of fire prevention and fighting to learn and apply. Investing from the beginning not only ensures fire prevention and fighting safety, but also has lower costs than renovating or investing in additional works.”

Chairman of the People's Committee of Thinh Liet Ward, Duong Van Hoa, said: "The ward assigns responsibility to each cadre in charge of the area, coordinating with the ward police and residential groups. We also mobilize socialization, establishing many inter-family fire prevention and fighting teams, thereby promoting the role of self-management and initiative in fire prevention at the grassroots level."

In Dinh Cong ward - an area where a house combined with production and business caught fire on June 16, 2024, killing 4 people - recently, fire prevention and fighting work has always been in a state of "winding up" from the ward government to the households.

Mr. Tran Van Tac, Head of Residential Group No. 26, Dinh Cong Ward (standing first from left) introduces the gasoline-powered fire pump. Photo: Hien Thu

Mr. Tran Van Tac, Head of Residential Group No. 26, Dinh Cong Ward enthusiastically showed us the fire fighting equipment including: gasoline-powered fire pumps, electric fire pumps, gas masks, axes, hammers, firefighting clothes... kept at the public fire fighting point.

All of these necessary items were purchased from socialized sources, showing that the people here are very aware of fire prevention and fighting. These equipment were recently requisitioned and promptly responded to extinguish the fire in the neighboring residential group, further strengthening the "4 on-site" motto in fire prevention and fighting.

Fire safety awareness is also imbued in many landlords with apartments for rent. For example, Mr. Nguyen Van Toan's family, in lane 170 Trinh Dinh Cuu street (Dinh Cong ward), has accepted to sacrifice economic benefits by removing 2 rental rooms on the first floor to ensure fire safety with a separate parking room design with fireproof doors, automatic fire extinguishing system and a second escape route. All floors are equipped with foam fire extinguishers and have fireproof doors between floors. This investment of his has helped him and many tenants feel secure in their living environment.

Residential group No. 26, Dinh Cong ward, equipped with many fire fighting equipment at the public fire fighting station. Photo: Hien Thu

Ms. Le Thi Thanh Nga, Acting Chairwoman of Dinh Cong Ward People's Committee, said: In order to implement Directive No. 19/CT-TTg, Dinh Cong Ward People's Committee has directed the Ward Police to develop an implementation plan and deploy it to all 43 residential groups. Currently, more than 11,200 households in the area have completed the plan to open emergency exits and equip with minimum fire prevention and fighting equipment. For business owners who do not comply with fire prevention and fighting regulations, the ward requires them to stop operating until they are completed.

Vice Chairman of Hoang Mai District People's Committee Vo Xuan Trong said: In the coming time, the district will focus on re-examining fire prevention and fighting and rescue for the number of boarding houses that have been inspected, providing guidance, recommendations, and strictly handling establishments that do not comply with regulations. For boarding houses that do not ensure fire safety conditions, the People's Committees of wards are requested to strictly handle and request residents to move out of these establishments.

Strictly implementing Directive No. 19/CT-TTg not only meets safety requirements and complies with the law, but is also a humane story. When tenants have chosen a place to rent, landlords need to be responsible for ensuring fire safety, which is not only a responsibility to themselves and their families, but also a responsibility to the community.

The government and police forces accompanying, guiding and advising owners of boarding houses, multi-storey houses and houses combining production and business to fully comply with fire prevention regulations is a meaningful work, contributing to the construction and development of the locality. However, to maintain long-term effectiveness, each citizen, each household and tenant also needs to equip themselves with knowledge, skills and equipment to prevent and fight "fire".

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/kinh-nghiem-pccc-tu-quan-hoang-mai-cot-loi-la-nguoi-dan-co-ky-nang-va-thiet-bi-697346.html