A month after a major fire gutted several shops in Broadway, the area is yet to witness any significant change in terms of fire safety preparedness.
While there is no word yet from the authorities on chalking out a concrete plan to keep the street safe from potential fire accidents, steps are yet to be initiated to decongest the roads which remain the biggest challenge for firefighters to navigate through the street in case of an emergency.
Though the District Collector had instructed Kerala Water Authority (KWA) officials to install fire hydrants, a key firefighting requirement, in Broadway without delay, the project remains at an initial stage. The KWA has received a proposal to install the system in Broadway, along with two other locations, and officials are in the process of preparing an estimate, official sources said.
In Broadway’s case, a KWA official raised doubts about the effectiveness of a fire hydrant, as the area has only intermittent water supply. “It would be better to connect the hydrant to an existing water source in the vicinity rather than depend on KWA pipelines,” the official said.
A Fire and Rescue Services official cited the difficulty of laying pipes through the congested streets within a short period.
