DNCC to set up fire hydrants in slums
If you live in Dhaka, you know how frighteningly frequent fires in slums are. In this year alone, fires have engulfed several large slums in the city, notably in Kalyanpur, Madhubagh and Dakshinkhan -- causing damage to lives and property.
Often, fire service struggles to douse the flames in these densely populated slums, mainly because of water scarcity and fire engines failing to enter the narrow alleys.
Last year, Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Mayor Atiqul Islam said they want to install fire hydrants in slums so that their dwellers can respond immediately and minimise losses in case of such incidents.
The idea was simple: giving slum dwellers a means to douse or contain blazes before firefighters arrive, and to give firefighters an additional source of water.
But for the next 15 months, this plan was nothing but an empty promise, as no visible steps had been taken to install hydrants in slum areas.
However, DNCC recently allocated Tk 10 crore to install fire hydrants in these densely populated areas.
DNCC Chief Executive Officer Selim Reza said, "Fire hydrants will be installed in Dhaka like in the developed world. Initially, these will be installed in slums under the north city corporation area. We will gradually install hydrants in rest of the places."
"The initial work of the project has started. We hope that some progress will be visible soon," he added.
Welcoming the initiative, Director General of Fire Service and Civil Defence Brig Gen Md Main Uddin said, "Fire hydrant systems exist in all developed cities. If this project is implemented, the work of the fire service will become easier."
Urban planner Adil Muhammad Khan said, "This initiative will be successful if the hydrants can be directly linked with a reservoir. It's praiseworthy that a government organisation is thinking about the slum dwellers. This project has to be implemented on a priority basis."
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