The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Usman Road narrow for fire fighting

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Thursday, Aug 21, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Usman Road narrow for fire fighting

A. Srivathsan

“Road width, after construction of flyover, just enough for fire fighting vehicles to move in”

— Photo: R. Ragu

A view of the Usman Road flyover at T. Nagar.

Chennai: Usman Road with its many multistoried buildings does not have adequate width to facilitate fire rescue operations, making it that much less safe place for a public congregation.

In response to a set of questions posed by The Hindu, K.R. Shyamsundar, Director, Fire and Rescue Services (DFRS), said the Usman Road width, after the construction of flyover, is sufficient for fire fighting vehicles to move in. But it is insufficient for hoisting high-rise ladders necessary for rescue operations in multi-storied buildings.

Chennai Corporation records show that Usman Road, from the Burkit Road junction to the Bazullah road junction, is 24.3 m wide. After the construction of the flyover, the roads on the sides of the flyover have a width of 4.5 and 5 m.

For conducting fire rescue operations in multi-storied buildings a minimum width of 7m is required.

Any building with more than five floors or 15 m in height is classified as multi-storied.

Building rules mandate that a minimum of 7 m open space free of obstruction is necessary for placing high-rise ladders to conduct rescue operations during fire and other calamities. Many multi-storied buildings on Usman Road do not have the necessary side open space for such operations.

Dr. Shyamsundar said as per a High Court order and Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority Monitoring Committee recommendations, buildings completed before February 1999 had been regularised, but they need to install an alternative fire fighting system as recommended by the DFRS officials based on the available infrastructure at the site. The DFRS has made annual mock drills necessary for licence renewal.

Regarding buildings completed after 1999, the DFRS will insist on strict compliance with the National Building Code and will follow it with onsite inspection, he said.

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