Over 30pc garment factories found poorly equipped; fire dept vows to cancel licences, take action against its inspectors
One-third of the 89 garment factories visited by fire officials on the second day of safety inspection lack mechanisms to fight incidents of fire.
The drive started in the wake of the deadly Tazreen fire that killed 111 workers on November 24.
Fifteen teams comprising 60 fire officials visited factories in Ashulia to categorise the fire safety arrangements into three groups — A, B and C.
In two days of inspection, 163 of the 574 garment factories located in the Ashulia industrial belt were visited.
Some 53 factories fall under the C category, meaning they lack fire safety licences, adequate fire extinguishers, hose pipes, water reservoirs and trained workers.
“The factories without fire safety licences will be shut down if the their management do not apply for them promptly,” said M Abdus Salam, director of Fire Service and Civil Defence, after yesterday’s inspection.
Factories with poor fire safety records would be given a month to address their faults, Salam said. “We will take action against the inspectors who have issued licences without verifying the fire safety measures.”
One of the teams, led by Abdus Salam, found that Annesha Style Ltd, a sweater maker at Nishchintapur, did not have adequate fire extinguishers and fire alarms, while the hose pipes were found to be leaking.
An annoyed Salam told Annesha officials: “For how many years did you not check the pipes? Workers are dying, don’t you see that?”
The team also found ample fire risks at the factory’s warehouse because of electric short circuit. As per regulations, warehouse lighting should be through power sources other than electricity.
Meanwhile, most workers were found lacking the knowledge to operate fire extinguishers.
“I have no idea,” said Sumi, who was sitting at a workstation next to a fire extinguisher.
Similar feedback came from some other workers at the factory.
The fire service team also found that the factory management did not conduct regular fire security drills.
Asked, KM Ahsan Mia, general manager of Annesha Style, claimed the factory had updated its fire safety licence.
“We will show it tomorrow [today],” he told The Daily Star. He admitted that the company had been lethargic in addressing the shortcomings related to fire safety.
“But we will remove the lapses in line with the recommendations of the fire service department,” he said.
The team also did not find a fire safety licence at S Nahar and Sons, a knit garment subcontracting factory located in the same building as Annesha Style Ltd.
When quizzed, Mashiur Rahman, director of the factory, could not come up with a satisfactory answer.
“We have taken lease of the factory space from its former owner. He had a fire safety licence, so we did not apply for our own. But now we will get it,” said Mashiur.
The building also did not have adequate water reservoirs to fight incidents of fire.
The fire service team also visited the premises of Ha-Meem Group and suggested it disconnect the electric connection from the bonded warehouse to ensure best practice of fire safety measures.
“We will remove it soon,” said Md Masudur Rahman, manager of human resources and compliance.
According to the fire service law, bonded warehouses should be free from electric connection to avoid unexpected accidents.
The team also recommended setting up a fire hydrant system and controlling panel board and heating detection system at the Ha-Meem Group.
Salam blamed negligence of management for not having licences on fire safety.
“Apart from legal issues, those owners who run factories have moral obligations to ensure proper and adequate fire safety measures for their workers,” he said.
Source: The Daily Star
