Fire at Kg Lambak 'B' - 11/03/2010

Blaze engulfs family home

A 12-YEAR-OLD girl died in a blaze that gutted a two-storey house in Kg Lambak Kiri last night.

When The Brunei Times arrived at the scene at 10.15pm, the fire had been extinguished but the Fire and Rescue team were still searching for the missing family member.

"We received an emergency call at 8.46pm and arrived at the scene in five minutes; the team from Lambak arrived first," said Senior Superintendent Muhd Shahreeni Yussof, the commanding officer for Berakas and Lambak Fire and Rescue Stations.

"We were told that the victim was trapped inside the house," he added, before confirming that the team had found the body of the missing girl, who the parents have asked not to be named in this report.

The commanding officer said that four families with a total of 27 members lived in the house.

Although The Brunei Times saw one girl being treated for smoke inhalation by an ambulance medic at the scene, the authorities had confirmed that all the other family members were safely evacuated from the house.

Noor Azman Hj Sulaiman, the uncle of the girl who perished in the blaze, said he was resting when the lights went out.

"I thought it was a blown fuse and wanted to go to the main switch, but I went outside to see if the whole area was affected. That's when I saw the smoke coming from the house and knew that there was a fire," he said

"We shouted: 'Fire! Fire!' so that everyone would run out," he said.

At the time of the interview, the investigation by firefighters into the cause of the blaze was still ongoing and he could not determine the estimated cost of damage to the home.

According to the commanding officer, 24 firefighters and four fire engines, two from each station, were deployed to the scene.

It took firefighters 42 minutes to extinguish the blaze, a factor exacerbated by the first team to arrive having difficulties locating the fire hydrant as it was covered with soil.

"We couldn't find the fire hydrant as it was being covered illegally (near a shop at the entrance of the street). That's why it took time to get water supply," he explained.

"The water pressure was also low. Because of the difficulties, we called for a water tank from Bandar to render assistance. In the meantime, it took the firefighters five minutes to dig up the area surrounding the hydrant," he said.

In light of the complications, Muhd Shahreeni reminded members of the public to make sure that the fire hydrant is kept in sight as to not hinder the work of firefighters in such emergency situations.

"This has happened before in other districts. This is the first time this year that it has happened in my command."

Also at the scene to assist in assessing the situation were teams from the Royal Brunei Police Force, Department of Electrical Services, Crime Investigation Department, medics and forensics.

Taken from Brunei Times

Police continue to investigate cause of fire

Some cooking left unattended is believed to have set off the fire that dreadfully cut short the life of a teenage girl on Thursday night at Kg Lambak, Berakas B.

However, further investigations are expected to be carried out by the Royal Brunei Police Force to finalise the findings.

The Year Eight student was said to be asleep in her room when the raging fire swept through the house almost instantaneously. She was identified as Norazwani binti Noorazlan born on March 24, 1997, just 13 days short of her 13th birthday.

Her charred body was discovered by fire fighters inside a room after the fire was extinguished.

Fire fighters from Berakas Fire Station and Lambak Fire Station were called into action around 8.46pm after receiving a distress call. They were joined by BSB Fire Station in their efforts to douse the blazing fire.

The fire was so intense that it took around 42 minutes for fire fighters to bring the blaze under control.

When one of the Fire Engines ran out of water, efforts to combat the inferno were hampered when fire fighters couldn't find the fire hydrant. It was hidden under a pile of wooden planks and sand. It took five minutes to find the water source according to informed sources.

Taken from Borneo Bulletin

Public warned against blocking fire hydrants

THE National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC) yesterday issued a warning to the public not to block fire hydrants as it could hinder the operations of the firefighters during emergencies.

"Fire hydrants are an integral part of fire protection and sufficient water supply is critical in our operations during emergency situations. Therefore, it must never be obstructed or abused," said Yahya Hj Abd Rahman, the Director of the Centre, at a press conference yesterday following the fire incident that gutted a two-storey house in Kg Lambak Kiri on the night of March 11. The same fire took the life of a 12-year-old girl.

It took 42 minutes for the blaze to be extinguished after the first team of firefighters which arrived at the scene had difficulties locating the fire hydrant which was covered with sand and bricks.

"The first team at the scene was unable to locate the fire hydrant as it was being covered illegally by sand and bricks, believed to be used for construction works. It took the firefighters five minutes to dig up the area surrounding the hydrant. Due to the difficulties which also include low water pressure at that time, a water tanker had to be called in to render assistance, adding to the delay of our operation," said acting deputy director of Fire and Rescue Department, Lim Hock Guan based on the report from the night of the incident.

Yahya said the department was still investigating to determine which company dumped the construction materials that covered the fire hydrant. He added that when investigators went to back to the scene on Friday, the area was already cleared of the obstructions.

In light of the tragic results, Yahya reminded the public, particularly residents living and contractors working nearby, to ensure that fire hydrants are not obstructed to avoid hampering rescue work of firefighters. "However, this is somehow becoming a trend, as we have been receiving similar reports of fire hydrants being covered, damaged and abused, as well as obstructed by a structures being built around it," said the Director of NDMC.

"Although such occurrences have not hindered our operations in past cases, the incident on March 11 triggered a slight delay in our battle with the blaze," he added.

Motorists are also reminded not to park their vehicles near a fire hydrant as this could also pose difficulty for firefighters to access it. In such cases, the Fire and Rescue Department and the Department of Water Services may take serious action to offenders who abuse government properties which include fire hydrants. Under JKR's Water Supply Act Chapter 121 section 29.1, those who abuse water supply facilities could be fined up to $120,000. Yahya also stressed that fire exits, extinguishers and hose drills should not be obstructed or abused as well.

Taken from Brunei Times

My deepest condolence to the families involved...