Bhubaneswar: In the 10 days since the March 16 blaze at SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack, a series of safety measures have been launched, from detailed audits to staff sensitisation on fire safety. While several initiatives have been taken to fix the fire safety-related issues, many more are in the pipeline and will be implemented in the next two months.Official sources said the fire safety audit of the SCB MCH started on March 21 and completed on Friday. Four different teams involving electrical engineers and fire services personnel conducted the audit on a war footing and submitted their reports with suggestions and recommendations.
Fire safety mock drills have not been conducted in the hospital since the SCB fire tragedy. Such mock drills will start on Monday and continue for several days. “Fire safety systems, including automatic sprinkler systems, smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, and fire-resistant construction materials, have been installed in the hospital. According to the recommendations of the fire services directorate and fact-finding team of govt, more fire safety equipment will be installed,” said an official of the hospital.A professor of the institution said there is a need for proper training for security staff and hospital staff. “Knowledge about the use of fire extinguishers and crisis management during a fire incident is important. We need to streamline the training process and mock drills for the staff to bring changes. As the premier hospital has around 88 buildings, it will take around two months to complete the fire safety checks, mock drills and necessary installations,” he added.Dr Jyotish Chandra Choudhury, superintendent of SCB MCH, said they have taken several initiatives to prevent future fire accidents in the hospital. “We have conducted fire safety audits. We will hold mock drills and conduct training for our staff. Whatever we need to robust our fire safety systems, we will do that. We have already organised a review meeting on this,” he added.On Thursday, health secretary Aswathy S visited SCB MCH and conducted a meeting with SCB authorities, heads of departments, staff of the electrical division, fire services and works department in the presence of the Cuttack collector and director of medical education and training (DMET) to review the ongoing and upcoming fire safety-related works in the institution.In the meeting, it was decided that a fire safety check will be conducted every day. Later, a weekly review will be organised to check whether the systems are well in place, said an official who was in the meeting.
