Saad Al-Dosari

By : Saad Al-Dosari

We all know that fire is a powerful force of nature; a tiny spark of it could lead to a catastrophe putting lives and properties in jeopardy. What is truly shocking is not that we know about this, but the fact that we are not doing anything about it.

We are still shocked by the fire that broke out at the public hospital of Jazan that led to the death of 24 people. Maybe it is too early to talk about the causes of the fire and how people lost their lives, how smoke pervaded through the hospital’s floors although the fire reportedly broke out at the first floor, why some of the emergency exists were closed, and why no fire fighting mechanism was deployed in the hospital. Maybe we need to wait for the investigation report to discuss all these points in details, however, we can definitely talk about how the culture of safety and taking enough precautions to prevent disasters is absent from our lives.

Let me share with you two incidents; the first took place at one of the biggest companies in the Saudi market, and the second occurred at a business building in Jeddah.

The first happened in a company that suddenly decided to work on its safety culture and evacuation plans in case of fire or any other emergency. It all started with the employees of that company noticing new signs hanging around the place showing arrows and instructions pointing to exits and assembly points.

The next day there were more signs showing names and assignments; floor safety officers and groups safety leaders. It certainly sounded good. The only troubling thing was my friend, working at the company, being assigned as a floor safety officer without being notified. It just happened that his name was there, and he did not exactly know what kind of responsibilities he was supposed to presume under this title! He decided to do nothing about it. He was expecting to be contacted in a few days by the safety department in his company to discuss his newly assigned role. That call never came, and the signs were removed about a month or so later, they were all part of a plan to get the building insured with an insurance company, the plan failed, there was no more need for the signs.

The second incident took place in one of those tall business buildings scattered all over the city. In the middle of the day, employees of different offices operating in the building were surprised by the sound of handheld sirens (notice that I said handheld, not an automated system!), and people were instructed to evacuate offices, this was an unplanned fire drill. Of course, there were no previous plans or safety agreements, the building janitors who were moving around with the sirens had everything set, “We closed the elevators, use the stairs.” They were shouting in the corridors and that was all. The next day, the building was erecting a sign at the entrance “thank you all for participating in the successful fire drill we had yesterday!”

The bottom line here is simple and direct, we do not have much of a safety culture. Whether in schools, hospitals, workplaces, or in our own homes, safety precautions are the last thing we have in mind; just ask yourself if there is a fire extinguisher somewhere in your home.

Instead of putting plans in place to manage risk and deal with its consequences, we find solace in expressions like “that was their destiny,” “you cannot escape fate.” Truthful expressions, but they do not, in any way, mean that we are not required to take the necessary precautions to prevent an incident from turning into a full blown catastrophe.

Maybe it is a wakeup call to start taking this seriously; it is about time we have at our workplaces and at schools, clear plans and training on what to do in case of emergencies. It is about time we integrate safety into our culture.

Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in the Column section are their own and do not reflect RiyadhVision’s point-of-view.

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