Fire and Rescue Services dept. to submit detailed proposal to avert fire at Brahmapuram plant

Fire and Rescue services personnel toiling to put out the smoke billowing from the smouldering garbage at Brahmapuram waste treatment plant where the garbage caught fire.
| Photo Credit: THULASI KAKKAT

The Fire and Rescue Services department is set to submit a proposal on measures to be taken at the Kochi Corporation’s solid waste treatment plant at Brahmapuram to avert a crisis similar to the one caused by the recent fire breakout.

The proposal is likely to be submitted in a day or two. Though it was expected to be submitted at a meeting of the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) chaired by District Collector N.S.K. Umesh on Thursday, the department asked for a couple of days to fine-tune it.

“They [fire and rescue services] will prepare an estimate of the various items to be deployed at the plant. Funds are not an issue, with the DDMA prepared to bear it, and if it proves too much, the State government would also be approached,” said Mr. Umesh.

More than the deployment of physical force at the plant, the district administration is looking at technological solutions to address the threat of fire at the plant. The Assistant Collector has already been asked to hold discussions with the Kerala Maker Village, the hub of upcoming technology start-ups, in this regard.

“We are looking at solutions like static monitoring system that will detect high temperature or smoke and automatically trigger the water sprinkler system. Drones for aerial surveillance of the extent of fire and infrared sensors are the other possible technology solutions. The main goal is the early detection of fire or rise in temperature facilitating prompt alerts,” said Mr. Umesh.

Among other things, the Fire and Rescue Services department proposes to deploy around 20 fire watchers on daily wages at the plant for detecting fire or smoke on real-time basis. “The Corporation has agreed to bear the expenses. The idea is to deploy fire watchers in all eight sectors of the plant in shifts of eight hours each. This will make life a lot easier for firefighters as early intervention will help avert escalation of fire,” said K. Harikumar, District Fire Officer.

The DDMA meeting, among other things, discussed ways to face potential heatwave-like situations by opening water kiosks, and the monsoon preparatory works.