Home
+
Published : 02 Mar 2024, 03:36 AM
The fire in the FR Tower in Banani four years ago that resulted in 27 fatalities brought to light the serious irregularities in the construction and safety standards of buildings in Dhaka.
The powers that be 'woke up' to the lack of safety in the building, including the addition of unauthorised floors raised beyond the original design plans.
After the Nimtali or Churihatta fire incidents in Old Dhaka, the officialdom said that the warehouses illegally storing chemicals were behind the huge number of deaths.
Such irregularities are reported every time a fire incident causes a tragedy in the 'dungeons of death" masquerading as commercial establishments.
Each incident prompts critical questions: Why do authorities remain inactive until lives are lost, and why are preventive measures not implemented during periods of normalcy?
The safety of buildings with restaurants in Dhaka, including in Dhanmondi, Mohammadpur and Khilgaon, has now been called into question after the Green Cozy Cottage fire on Bailey Road.
An architect of a building in Dhanmondi has termed the building he designed as 'risky' as there are many restaurants built across it, which do not have fire safety systems.
"Each and every one of the eight government agencies that approve commercial buildings like Green Cozy Cottage should be held guilty of these negligent deaths," said another architect, Iqbal Habib, vice-president of Bangladesh Environment Movement.
WHEN WILL THE WAKE UP CALL COME?
Police initially gave a death toll of three, but it rose dramatically as firefighters reached the upper floors and started bringing out dozens of bodies of trapped diners and workers after the fire erupted in Green Cozy Cottage on Thursday night.
The charred victims were piled in a fleet of trucks to take them to mortuaries amid anguished shouts and tears from people watching in the streets.
After 46 deaths in the fire on Bailey Road, Fire Service and Civil Defence Director General Brig Gen Moin Uddin told reporters, "There was no fire safety plan in the building. We saw one or two fire extinguishers. But the most important thing is only one staircase, the sole exit."
He also said that there is no ventilation in the room where people were sheltered, not even a window. As food shops were located on almost every floor, gas cylinders were placed unplanned.
There are still cylinders on the staircases of the building's four floors. Fortunately, none of the cylinders exploded as the Fire Service rescued at least 75 survivors.
The Fire Service chief said they had given notices to the building owners several times to ensure the fire safety of the building. However, he did not say whether any action was taken against them.
Salim Newaz Bhuiyan, a former deputy director of the Fire Service who is now working as a fire safety advisor, said, "If there is any violation of the law, the Fire Service will issue a notice. If the notice is ignored, the building should be declared unsafe.”
He said he was unaware of any law that requires sending multiple notices before taking action.
"The law says that if they [landlords] do not implement the safety plan, then you [Fire Service] will take action. If you do not have the jurisdiction to file a case, you should inform the authorities who can file the case, including the city corporation or district administration."
So, who are the authorities to monitor the irregularities in building construction? Firstly, the capital development authority RAJUK (Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha) has jurisdiction to approve the design of any building.
It is decided at the time of design approval whether it will be used for residential or commercial purposes. In the case of commercial buildings, Fire Service officials are supposed to monitor its safety and provide safety plans. But they are following this rule only when a deadly fire occurs.
Ashraful Islam, chief urban planner of RAJUK, said the Cozy Cottage was approved as a commercial building with seven floors to house offices, not restaurants or shops.
Although there is no legal obligation, since the building is commercial, Ashraful felt that separate fire exits were required.
During and after the construction of a building, RAJUK and city corporation officials are supposed to check its safety and approve the commercial establishments set up there.
But Iqbal Habib says the authorities are not following these rules.
After visiting the Cozy Cottage building, he noted that people died of asphyxiation because it had no normal ventilation system.
The architect also said the RAJUK had no chance to approve the building because of compliance issues.
“Restaurant kitchens are commercial kitchens. Its design is very complex. That cannot be approved here.”
The city corporations cannot grant trade licences without these approvals either, according to him.
"The agencies who have approved them [restaurants] are somehow responsible for these deaths. I want to see them accused in the case over the deaths because they did not inspect the building and ensure compliance.”
Many such buildings are enclosed with glasses while gas cylinders are placed inside, he said. These structures have become like ‘dungeons of death’.
"We hope that the government will sit tomorrow and take measures through a task force to identify the dangerous buildings like time bombs in this city. Just as the Bangladesh government changed the entire industrial sector of RMG in just two and a half years after the Rana Plaza collapse, it must ensure the compliance of all buildings within the next six months."
WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF THE BUILDINGS
There is now a trend of several restaurants in multi-storied buildings all over Dhaka. At least a dozen such buildings have sprung up on both sides of Satmasjid Road in Dhanmondi, each housing up to 20 restaurants and eateries.
Now architect Tariqul Lovelu questioned the fire safety of the 14-storey Gausia Twin Peak building on Satmasjid Road, posting a photo on Facebook and tagging its architect Mustafa Khalid Palash.
Khalid wrote on his Facebook page that the building is dangerous and he is constantly worried about it.
There are more than 10 restaurants and eateries in the Gausia Twin Peak building.
“Though designed and approved as a commercial building, it has been completely converted into a fire-prone restaurant building with major disruption to its use. The last power given by RAJUK as an architect to sign the report for the occupancy certificate is not taken care of here. The business is going on without taking the occupancy certificate.”
Khalid refrained from providing reports and edge-built drawings to the developer, but his efforts did not work.
"If you ask the developer, the answer is that they have a fire licence."
Attempts to contact Gausia Developers Limited, the constructor of the building, failed as no one answered the phone when bdnews24.com called the numbers on their website and Facebook page.
Md Fakhruddin, chief of Mohammadpur Fire Station, said he did not receive any letter from Khalid about the Gausia Twin Peak, but heard about the issues.
"I am new here. We have to go to the scene and see how true the allegations are, how risky it is, and what the safety-security situation of the building is. Before that, nothing will be done suddenly."
HIGHLY INFLAMMABLE INTERIOR MATERIALS
Fire Service personnel who went to extinguish the fire in the building on Bailey Road said that the building was filled with flammable interior items. These burned and produced a lot of smoke.
One of them said when they put out a fire in any house, they see that a lot of flammable materials are used inside.
Mahfuz Khan, who runs interior designer Dot Five, said: "It is true that a lot of combustible materials are used in the interior decoration of the building. In 80 percent of cases, the interior of a building is covered with particle board, which is highly flammable.
"These boards are used in building ceiling designs, wall panelling, partition walls, all because of which the fire can spread quickly."
Fireproof materials are not used widely because they are expensive, he said.
Mahfuz said that various fire safety equipment are now available in the country, "Customers are not showing interest in them due to high prices.”
"There is a type of fireproof chemical coating (coating) like paint on the walls, which protects the walls from fire for up to an hour. There is little interest in them. There are now different types of fire doors, which can provide up to two hours of fire protection. We recommend installing these doors on emergency exits. But many avoid it because of the price.”
"Many modern systems are also available in the market, including automatic alarms and fire sprinklers, but most consumers are not interested in them."
Only five-star hotels and some multinational companies are now using fireproof materials, said Mahfuz.
