Islamabad takes lead in approving building safety codes

Associated Press of Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: After 63 years of its existence Pakistan, for the first time, has stepped ahead approving the municipal by-laws to necessitate the providing emergency exit and installation of fire prevention gadgets in residential and private structures.

Islamabad has taken lead in this regard, as the Board of the Capital Development Authority has approved the Islamabad Fire Prevention and Life Safety Regulations - 2010, empowering the civic body to direct amendment in designs of the private residential and commercial buildings to make them more safe in case of fire, quake and even bomb blasts.

`The regulations are aimed at improving and regulating the process to prevent and mitigate effects of disasters and emergencies especially in case of fire. The standards and regulations have been developed with the view to better protect of life and property of the citizens of the federal capital," according to the CDA spokesman.

He said these regulations will be a pioneer work in framing and implementing fire safety standards and regulations in Pakistan and will surely become a guideline for large urban centers to frame similar regulations to improve safety of their dwellers.

After inspections and risk assessments by our Emergency and Disasters Management Directorate, it has been observed that majority of the buildings in the federal capital were lacking basic measures for fire prevention, fire protection and life safety.

In these circumstances it had become imperative for the Capital Development Authority to take concrete measures on this very important matter that is why the civic body has developed these standards and regulations to mitigate and reduce the chances of emergencies.

CDA Chairman Imtiaz Inayat Elahi said absolute safety from fire is not attainable but the objective of developing these standards is to specify measures that will provide the degree of safety from fire which can reasonably be achieved.

He said that these standards and regulations would provide the provisions, which endeavour to avoid unnecessary inconvenience or interference with normal use and occupancy of buildings but insists upon compliance with minimum standard for fire prevention and life safety necessary in public interest. These regulations and standards have been divided into three broad clauses i.e. Fire Prevention, Life Safety and Fire Protection.

The fire prevention covers the aspects pertaining to design and construction of buildings on passive fire protection measures, describing various types of building material and their fire rating.

The Life Safety provision deals with event of fire and similar emergencies, addressing construction and occupancy features that are necessary to minimize danger to life from fire, smoke, fumes or panic. The Fire Protection aspect relates to appurtenance, their related components and guidelines for selecting correct type of equipments and installations meant for fire protection of buildings depending upon their classification and types.

According to the spokesman, "From Marriott blast to the recent inferno in Karachi Company, it has been witnessed that the inmates could not find any emergency exit. Either the emergency exists are not provided in the building or blocked just for commercial gains," he said.