Officials to check city’s equipment
Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt has called for an overhaul of the disaster prevention and mitigation systems and suspended all fire evacuation drills pending an inspection of fire-fighting equipment.
City Hall’s action follows the explosion of a carbon dioxide extinguisher on Friday that killed one student and injured several others during a fire drill at Rajavinit Mathayom School in Dusit district.
Three people involved in the drill have been charged with negligence, while an initial investigation suggests that high outdoor temperatures may have caused the extinguisher to explode.
Deputy governor Thawida Kamolvej said on Saturday City Hall has suspended all fire drills until all equipment passes safety checks.
All carbon dioxide extinguishers from fire stations have also been recalled, she said.
Fire stations and district offices have been instructed to work with community leaders to inspect all extinguishers in the city for signs of damage, leaks or other issues, she said.
Guidelines will be drawn up so inspections are properly conducted, she said.
Faulty or damaged fire extinguishers will be replaced by district offices and people will be able to alert the authorities about faulty equipment via the Traffy Fondue website, she said.
She said mock extinguishers will be used in future fire drill demonstrations to avoid risks.
“The standard of operations will be revised to come into line with that of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation,” she said.
Some fire extinguishers are taken from other agencies for fire drills, but they meet safety standards, she said. City Hall has set up a committee to investigate the incident at the school, she added.
Mr Chadchart said he has ordered City Hall officials not to use fire extinguishers from other agencies in fire drills. They were also ordered to collect information on firefighting equipment in communities, including the latest inspection dates and locations.
The governor expressed regret over the loss of life.
He said the CO2 fire extinguishers used for the demonstrations were pressurised to 800 to 1,200 pounds per square inch, while extinguishers at communities were pressurised to only 100psi.
City Hall had purchased about 10,000 fire extinguishers to be distributed to communities.
Mr Chadchart said those fire extinguishers were different from the one that exploded. They were special tanks with lower pressure, often used in government offices, he said.
He said people should not panic. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration will inspect fire extinguishers for safety, he said.
Police are investigating the cause of the explosion, he said, adding investigators told him that the fire extinguisher that exploded was six years old and was not filled with CO2 to the fullest capacity.
A forensic examination would shed light on how it went off, he said.
Meanwhile, the Criminal Court on Saturday granted bail to three officials charged over the explosion.
The trio were identified as Naphat Loymek, Atthapol Buthongrat and Chat-achana Boonkerd, each posting 50,000-baht bail.
According to a police report, the officials allegedly used an old, substandard fire extinguisher in the demonstration while failing to provide adequate protection to students.
Pirapon Premmanee, uncle of Khumthong Premmanee, the Matha- yom Suksa 6 student who was killed in the explosion, said on Saturday the family has not heard from the chief of the agency responsible for the fire drill demonstration.
So far, only the school and City Hall have expressed an intent to compensate the family for their loss.
A funeral rite will take place three for three days before a cremation is held on Tuesday, he said.
Mr Pirapon also said the family is overwhelmed after being informed by the school that Their Majesties ordered royally-bestowed wreaths to be placed at Khumthong’s funeral rite.