The fire incidents due to electrical short circuit are increasing alarmingly across the country, including capital city Dhaka, causing huge losses of lives and properties.
The shabby old and lower capacity line used for powering heavy devices is the main reason for short circuit, according to experts. Other causes include use of substandard appliances, negligence in following the building code, absence of fire prevention facilities, lack of regular monitoring and improper installation of devices.
The experts said the safety protocol of using power could not be ensured yet, resulting in fatal accidents one after another. They feared that the accidents would increase further as the electricity coverage is expanding with the government’s target to ensure “electricity to all by 2021”.
According to the Department of Fire Service and Civil Defense, 39 per cent of the total fire accidents took place due to short circuits. Some 8,644 fire accidents occurred in country last year. Due to such accidents, the total loss is estimated to be over Tk 232 crore.
In addition, 133 accidents occurred due to static electricity caused a loss of over Tk 69 lakh.
According to the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, a total of 58,188 patients were admitted to the institute since 2011. In 2020, a total of 2,854 people were admitted to the Institute.
According to the authorities concerned, the accidents caused by electricity have increased at an alarming rate in the last five years. About 50 per cent of the burn victims die and the rest suffer from physical and sometimes mental disability.
To prevent such accidents, the experts suggested strictly following the building code while regular maintenance and servicing should be ensured for other electrical equipment, including air-conditioners.
Director (Operations and Maintenance) of the Fire Service and Civil Defense Lt. Colonel Zillur Rahman said the buildings in Dhaka were designed in the 1990s which have provisions for only fan and light facilities. At that time, the general people did not use ACs and their wiring system is old one. So, it cannot bear the present higher load, resulting in the electric system of a building accident prone.
In this regard, the experts blamed the power distribution companies for continuously ignoring monitoring activities of the shabby old and lower capacity lines. People are using heavy devices with such weaker lines, which they said is the main cause of short circuit.
Use of Substandard Appliance
Another reason of the fire accident is massive use of cheaper, substandard electric appliances. Most of the markets and households do not use quality products despite having no guarantee facility. Due to these low feature products, accidents like short circuit and AC explosion happen frequently. Since Bangladesh is a densely populated country, an accident can cause a number of deaths and huge financial losses. Callousness is also a cause of the perilous fire accidents. During summer, people start using AC. But many users are reluctant to carry out early servicing of their devices which increases the explosion risk. Since new industries and new technologies are being adopted, the risk of accidents are increasing.
Negligence in Following Building Code
According to the Firefighting Act 2003, over six-storied buildings like factory, industry and office have to mandatorily implement fire prevention facility. Hence before 2003, there was no law for fire safety in the construction of buildings. These buildings are comparatively risky. Recently a fire accident occurred due to an explosion from air-conditioner at United Hospital in the capital, leaving five people dead.
Absence of fire prevention facilities
Even after a huge number of accidents and consequent deaths, people are constructing building randomly without fire prevention facility including in the cities. During fire, victims cannot find oxygen cylinders to use and cannot run out due to absence of alternative safety stairs.
Coordinator of Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery Dr. Samanta Lal Sen said, “I have given treatment to many burnt patients in my career. But I have never seen such a huge number of critical patients at the same time who are burnt in Narayanganj mosque accident. They were burnt head to toe.”
Lack of Regular Monitoring
Due to lack of regular monitoring of the connections and wiring of the building, such deadly accident threat increases. The distribution companies do not supervise this sincerely. As per the norms of electricity distribution companies, at the time of bill distribution, connection and wiring of the building should be checked monthly. Even the records of each accident are not being preserved, thus the officials who are involved in providing power cannot get experience from previous incidents.
Improper Installation of Devices
Improper installation of telephones, air-conditioning, water heaters, and other equipment in commercial buildings can lead to fire hazards. That is why an expert electrician should be hired when installing any device in the office that uses electricity because they are trained to check for mistakes and problems in the building’s electrical works and they are also well-versed in the codes and regulations of installation and maintenance of electrical equipment.
According to the admission information of the burn unit, the rate of burn victims has increased in rural areas since 2019. One of the reasons behind this is that most of the villages have electricity now.
In 2020, 25 percent of the burn victims were from Dhaka, 55 percent were from villages and the rest 20 percent were from other cities. In 2019, 7,344 people were burnt, of whom 30 percent were from Dhaka city, 45 percent from rural areas and 25 percent from other cities.
Of the admitted patients, 69.4 percent were in critical condition, 23.6 percent were non-emergency (routine) and 7 percent were referred from another hospital.
According to a study, among the causes of burns, there has been a recent increase in the incidence of electrocution.
At least 27 percent of the burn injury cases were for electric causes, 32 percent for flames, and 28 percent for hot water, 9 percent for other hot objects, 2 percent for chemicals, less than 1 percent for explosions and less than 1 percent for lightning.
The technicians who work on power lines or repair electrical devices do not have safety equipment. Moreover, there is no hospital allocation for their rehabilitation. So their families suffer in two ways.
Md. Mustafizur Rahman, an energy consultant, said both consumers and utility companies do not obey the law. They are reluctant to remove old shabby lines. The lines, those supplied electricity to lights and fans only, are now using heavy electronic devices like AC which are increasing the chances of accidents. Even the power companies do not provide proper, modern safeguard equipment to the service electricians. He suggested ensuring proper use of energy and maintenance gadgets to avoid accidents. The government-approved building code must be followed.
Misuse, overuse and improper installation of electrical devices can lead to various problems, especially in offices that rely on computers a lot. Proper maintenance, repair and replacement should be done regularly by a licensed electrician to make sure that the building is safe from fire.
Advisor of the Consumer Association of Bangladesh (CAB) Prof Shamsul Alam said, “If the design of wiring is improper, the risk fear will increase.”
In addition, the distribution companies do not follow the regular routine check. To avoid the deadly accidents, caution and frequent check is a must. For the new connection, a serous proper inquiry is needed to prevent the severe accidents.
Dr Samanta Lal Sen, national coordinator of Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, said that the fatality rate of burns due to electrocution has been increasing in the last few years due to carelessness, illegal electricity and gas lines, and failure to monitor them regularly.
Those who are working with electricity do not follow the necessary safety rules as well. It is important to pay attention to these issues for saving a life of an earning member of a family.
He added: “Generally the electricity burnt patients suffer more than others. I have observed in last five years that the rate of accidents from electrical short circuit have increased.”
He suggested enacting a law to prevent such accidents. If someone does not do AC servicing every year, his device has to be removed or he should be punished with a fine. The government, law enforcement agencies, media and the people have to work together to prevent accidents.
Commercial buildings in Singapore need to have their electrical works inspected regularly by a reputed servicing company to ensure public safety and for a smooth office operation daily. It is an investment that will also help one company expand, upgrade and grow successfully.
Superintendent Engineer of Dhaka Electricity Supply Company (DESCO) Mofizur Rahman said that it is not the duty of a distribution company to check wiring in households every month. To set up a meter and ensure safety are their responsibility. The consumers have to ensure proper modern safety in house or buildings. Even the power providers do not ensure the experienced technicians during the wiring in a building.
An official at Dhaka Power Distribution Company (DPDC) said it is not possible to monitor the in-house wiring every month and it is not a norm of a power service providing company as well. As much as possible, they do check the outer lines of electricity.
