10 days, 930 calls: Firemen fight blaze, corona fears

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NEW DELHI: This May has been a tough month for firemen. In the past 10 days, they have received 930 calls. Officials said they have been faced with a double dilemma, to douse the blazes and ensure that firefighters don’t get infected with coronavirus. Atul Garg, DFS director, said, “To ensure minimum risk and exposure to the novel coronavirus, we usually form a team of 2-3 officers for the rescue process.

A standing operating procedure for sanitisation has been put in place for officers who come in contact with people. Our officers can’t wear PPE kits as they will catch fire.” Recently, a fire broke out at a Covid-designated hospital and the fire department rescued eight Covid-positive patients.

Since May 1, Delhi Fire Service (DFS) has received 1,831 calls, the highest (122) being on May 25. The trend was the opposite last year as calls had started dipping towards the end of May. In 2019, even though the total number of calls were 3,316, there was a dip in the number of calls received in the last 10 days of May. The constant rise in temperature this year has resulted in a spike in the number of fires, officers said.

Fire officials said the number of calls this April dipped to 1,801 compared with 3,081 last year as most places were shut. DFS officials have advised factory and office owners to get their ACs serviced before reopening their workplaces. “People should also ensure that their firefighting equipment is upgraded so that emergency situations can be dealt with immediately. In summer, 15% of fires are caused because of faulty airconditioners,” Garg said