Ever grateful to the fire-fighters

No amount of praise can be enough for the brave men, and now also women, who risk their own lives to save those of others. As they say, save one life and you are a hero, save hundred and you are a fire-fighter. There are times when a fireman has lost his life in the line of duty, there are times when firemen risked terrorists’ bullets to douse a fire and there are times when scores of firemen have perished saving the city.

On April 14, 1944, a devastating fire broke out at the Victoria dock, Bombay. It originated in the S S Fort Stikine which was carrying a mixed cargo of cotton bales, gold, oil drums and ammunition including around 1,400 tons of explosives. The ship was destroyed in two giant blasts, scattering debris, sinking surrounding ships and setting fire to the area, killing more than 800 people. Sixty-six brave men of the Bombay Fire Service sacrificed their lives in the blaze that took three days to quell and came to be known as the Great Bombay Dock Fire.

Hence, the week from April 14 to 20 is observed as the National Fire Service Week. The Mumbai Fire Brigade headquarters at Byculla has a memorial to the 66 fire-fighters. 

A series of programmes were held across the city during the ongoing Fire Service Week. Among them were a fire and public building drill at the Kharghar fire station, a tactical medley drill and the individual fire ladder drill competition at Borivli. Women inducted in the fire services also participated in the drills. The Chembur fire station held an exhibition of fire-fighting equipment and also held a fire prevention lecture for housing societies. The Maharashtra Fire Services Directorate held state-level essay and drawing competitions for school children from grades fifth to ninth based on this year’s theme: Learn fire safety, increase productivity. 

Taking the initiatives of the Fire Service Week further, the Mumbai Fire Brigade will appoint a Fire & life safety auditor for high-rises. These auditors are professionals in the field of fire safety. The Mumbai Fire Brigade has also developed a state-of-the-art software-based system for building inspection. Recently, 12 customized motorcycles were introduced to cut response time and reach narrow lanes of the city. The bikes, acting as first-responders, have a jet spray, a fire-extinguisher, a siren and a walkie-talkie.

However, appreciating fire-fighters shouldn’t just be a once-a-year affair because they are there for each us every day.  

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