Fire is not loyal to anyone, stay away from it.
– Anonymous
FIRE is a good servant but a bad master. Remember this idiom which our parents and teachers keep reminding us about during our childhood?
Simply put, it means fire is useful when under control but left unchecked, it is dangerous and destructive. And it kills!
Of late, it’s not uncommon to come across news of several fire breakouts in Sarawak every other week; in fact every few days there are news of fire incidents. It seems like there are more fire cases than crime and accident cases in the media. No?
Even schools and government buildings have not been spared.
The following are but only some of the headlines that appeared in the local papers over the last two years:
- Fire engulfs school block in Sarawak (Jan 8 2022)
- 3 brothers burnt to death in house fire in Sarawak (Feb 26 2022)
- Wisma Bapa Malaysia server room catches fire (May 26 2022)
- Fire destroys Kuching house converted into car workshop (Oct 6 2022)
- Fire in Sarawak’s Kampung Gita kills three (Nov 13 2022)
- Fire erupts at Tabuan Dayak 12th floor building under construction (Nov 21 2022)
- More than 200 made homeless in Limbang as fire destroys 39-door longhouse (Jan 25 2023)
- Fire razes six houses at Kg Wireless, 80 residents affected (March 10 2023)
More often than not, electrical fault and human carelessness are the major causes of the fire. Old wiring, short circuits, unattended cooking, and candles were the main causes.
In Sarawak for example, longhouses are the main structures that are susceptible to fire. Often, we read about reports of fire destroying longhouses, leaving many people homeless and their belongings, including important documents, destroyed.
Most traditional longhouses were built using wooden materials that are highly flammable and fire breakers are absent. Therefore, architectural designs and construction materials play an important role in longhouse fire reduction.
According to Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department director Datuk Khirudin Drahman, there are 4,000 longhouses in the state and the majority of them do not comply with fire safety guidelines since the longhouses do not fall under the Sarawak Building Ordinance.
As most longhouses built many years ago have only been enjoying electricity supply in recent years, Khirudin reckons some rural folk are not aware of the dangers of having exposed wiring and overloading a power outlet which often cause fire.
What makes it hard for Bomba to fight longhouse fires is that the 4,000 longhouses are scattered throughout Sarawak’s vast hinterlands. The state is 37.5 per cent of the total size of the country.
“So, saving a longhouse from a fire is challenging, especially if it is deep in the interior,” laments Khirudin.
Over a period from 2015 to July 2020, a total of 120 longhouses were razed by fire. The highest number of incidents were reported in 2017 with 26, followed by 24 (2018), 21 (2019), 20 (2016), 17 (2015) and 12 (2020, Jan-Jul).
Total loses over the period involved tens of millions.
One incident on Dec 14 2018, at Rumah Sambau in Nanga Entulang in Sri Aman, claimed the life an elderly woman, and left some 200 people homeless.
How do we curb longhouse fires?
Bomba needs to continue with its educational programmes to educate longhouse residents on prevent methods.
The ongoing safety awareness and prevention programmes, outreach campaigns and camps are commendable. And it should be made mandatory for all longhouses to set up voluntary firefighting units to complement Bomba’s firefighting efforts.
More importantly, children must be made aware of the dangers of fire and that playing with matches and incendiary objects is dangerous.
With Hari Raya around the corner, hopefully bamboo canons will be banned as they are a source of fire outbreaks in the event they explode.
Meanwhile, the weekend blaze at Kpg Wireless in Miri where eight wooden houses were destroyed, leaving 80 villagers from 12 families homeless with nothing on their back except their clothes, saddens me.
A video clip about the fire went viral on social media nationwide within a few minutes of the incident. One couldn’t help but sympathise with the affected families.
So far the cause of the fire and losses are yet to be ascertained.
The most fellow neighbours and friends could do for them is to pass the hat around and collect money and donate food, clothing and the daily necessities. Some may be offered temporary accommodation by relatives and non-governmental organisations. Of course the relevant authorities will step in and provide welfare aid.
All these aids will be of some help for a while, but the bigger issue is for the victims to get back on their feet and lead normal lives. It may take months or even years.
For some they may have to live with the trauma for the rest of their lives.
Most will have to apply for duplicates or extracts of documents like ICs, birth certificates and academic certificates destroyed in the fire. And believe me, it’s not going to be fast. The victims have to go through stringent verification procedures.
This is when the local assemblyman and MP for the area need to act fast and help their affected constituents.
The representatives will be kept busy for a while.
The views expressed here are those of the columnist and do not necessarily represent the views of New Sarawak Tribune.
