A massive fire at Lahores Shah Alam Market that killed three persons and completely destroyed many buildings and the merchandise worth billions of rupees on Monday is a serious comment on the firefighting capacity of the city district government. Fire crews spent most of Tuesday struggling to put out the blaze which left more than 25 people injured.
There have been instances in the past where the fire caused by electrical short circuit or for some other reason could be extinguished only after it had completely gutted the shopping malls and plazas in the provincial metropolis. The damage caused by Mondays fire could have been contained and the three precious lives saved had the city administration installed fire hydrants at this main business centre or through a quick response by its firefighting machinery. Both factors were missing. It was the residents and traders doing the rescue operation and helping themselves until the fire fighters could be roused from their slumber. Then the fire extinguisher vehicles also faced difficulty in reaching the spot because the freeways were all choked. But when it comes to such mishaps involving criminal negligence of the official apparatus, Lahore is no exception. The people of Karachi still have strong memories of workers being evacuated from the lubricant manufacturing plant of National Refinery which caught fire in 2005 and the raging blaze could not be put out for many hours due to late arrival of the fire brigade. The plant did not have an adequate fire fighting equipment of its own. There was another alarming incident. As many as 12 people, including six women and three children, died of gastroenteritis a few days after a chemical factory was gutted in Karachi some years ago.
The provincial governments must shake their local administrations out of lethargy instead of continuing with the practice of announcing cash compensations for victims after the incident. There is a need for preparing a comprehensive plan for installing and maintaining special fire hazard systems at shopping malls and plazas in urban centres.
