TOI : Fire brigade set to soar higher : Oct 14,2007
Fire brigade set to soar higher
Yogesh Naik I TNN
Mumbai: With residential apartments in the city on an upward swing, the Mumbai fire brigade too is trying to keep up. The fire brigade is ready to procure a ladder which can give them access to buildings up to 25 storeys. At present, the fire brigade has ladders, which can reach only 20 storeys.
Mumbai has over 5,000 highrises and the number is only increasing, said chief fire officer Kiran Kadam. Vithoba Naik, deputy chief fire officer, added, We plan to buy an aerial ladder that will be able to take us up to 25 storeys. We will try it out for a few months and then get a few more.
At present, the Mumbai fire brigade has 17 aerial ladders, turntable ladders and hydraulic platforms. This month, it got three ladders, of which two were replacements.
However, by the end of next year, the department hopes to get more new equipment. We have to procure the best machines in the world. Till this year, we got replacements for old machines. Now, the brigade has to get more machines by the end of next year, said additional municipal commissioner Shrikant Singh, who supervises the functioning of the fire brigade.
That said, fire brigade officials also add that all highrise apartments need to have an in-built fire fighting system which should be checked at periodic intervals. Moreover, an official said, Though we are planning to get the best machines, our roads are in an abysmal state. These imported tenders need straight and better roads to manoeuvre.
Another grouse that the fire brigade department has is the customs duty for the machines. We have to get many more fire tenders for the escalating needs of Mumbai, but we have to pay at least 40% as customs duty on aerial ladders. The government had given a 100% customs duty exemption to fire tenders from 1992-1999. They withdrew it and made the fire tenders expensive. We have been repeatedly urging them to give us an exemption, said R A Chaudhary.
TOP VIEW
The highest aerial ladder available in the world can reach a height of 104 m. It is manufactured by Finnish company Bronto skylift
Mumbai fire brigade officials said that most European countries do not use ladders with a height of more than 30 metres. They believe that each building should have an in-built fire-fighting system
The wind velocity is high in Mumbai as we are close to the sea. Besides the length of the highest ladder in the world (104 metres) is based on a truck having a length of 15 metres so manoeuvrability becomes difficult, said ADO R A Chaudhary. He added that Mumbai roads are not suitable for such types of aerial ladders
Current Equipment Aerial ladders 6 Hydraulic platforms 7 Turntable ladders 4 Breathing apparatus vans 3 Rescue vans 3 Fire tenders 56 Jumbo tankers 27 Ambulances 13 Special lighting vans 4 Hydraulic rescue tools 30 Power boats 6 Pneumatic lifting bags 30 Thermal imaging camera 2 Control post van 1 Jeeps 31 Cars 8
UP IN THE AIR: Fire brigade personnel operate a 32-ft Bronto skylift at Byculla firebrigade headquarters. This is one of the new three aerial ladders that the department has procured
Publication:Times of India Mumbai; Date:Oct 14, 2007; Section:Times City; Page Number:2
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