Investment housing basements are ticking time bombs, warns Al-Qudaihi

• Brigadier Mohsen Al-Qudaihi, Director of the Ahmadi Governorate Prevention Department in the Kuwait Fire Force, called on heads of households to teach their children and domestic workers how to deal with a fire, God forbid, and to contact the operations room to report it.

• Al-Qudaihi pointed out the importance of renewing the fire license and not being lenient, with the possibility of applying for an appointment three months before the license expires for a period of two years.

Brigadier Mohsen Al-Qudaihi, Director of the Ahmadi Governorate Prevention Department in the Kuwait Fire Force, emphasized the necessity for employers to maintain their facilities by adhering to firefighting requirements. He noted that the department does not show favoritism to any employer who violates these preventive measures, prioritizing the public interest and the preservation of lives and property.

Al-Qudaihi said in an interview with Al-Rai newspaper that the prevention sector is very strict about providing safety equipment and having sprinklers in wedding halls, school halls, and clubs to protect their visitors.

He warned of the danger of renting basements in investment housing, which are often used for random storage of hazardous, chemical, and gaseous materials, shops, furniture, wedding office items, central kitchens, workers’ housing, and other items. This makes the basement a time bomb that could explode at any moment and burn everything.

He called on heads of households to teach their children and domestic workers how to deal with a fire, God forbid, and to contact the operations room to report it.

He pointed out that the modernization process in the sector is ongoing through digital transformation, aiming to eliminate paper transactions by early next year.

He noted that the administration has worked to reduce the time required for project transactions, which are now completed within 48 hours if all requests are provided by the engineering office supervising the transaction follow-up, while also monitoring the study of the projects.

Ahmadi’s prevention sector’s milestones in early 2024

The prevention sector in Ahmadi Governorate conducted 2,690 inspection tours of facilities, during which 270 violations were recorded, 93 closure warnings were issued, and 57 facilities were closed for violating preventive requirements.

The sector has also worked to reduce the time required for transactions, now completing them within 48 hours if all requests are provided by the engineering office supervising the follow-up of the transaction.

Monitoring the study of projects and submitting through the Kuwait Fire Force website has eliminated the need to visit the administration, saving time and effort for employees and reviewers and eliminating the long queues previously seen in the administration.

Al-Qudaihi pointed out the importance of renewing the fire license and not being lenient, with the possibility of applying for an appointment three months before the license expires for a period of two years.

The prevention sector also conducts inspection tours to ensure the provision of safety equipment and the presence of sprinklers in wedding halls, school halls, and clubs to protect visitors and reduce losses in the event of an accident.

Al-Qudaihi also called on heads of households to teach family members and domestic workers how to deal with a fire in the home and how to communicate with the operations room to report it. There are training courses for workers on how to handle a fire, covering everything from reporting it to evacuation operations and extinguishing the fire.

Has engineering office involvement accelerated project completion?

Al-Qudaihi commended the role of consulting offices in licensing projects according to fire department requests and under their supervision. He noted that there are no delays in transactions, and the owner or the engineering office supervising the project licensing can inquire about the status of the transaction through the Kuwait Fire Force website. By entering the transaction number, the website will show the current status of the transaction without the need for the owner to follow up in person.

Last year, 300 projects were studied and 477 projects were implemented. In addition, the alarm system, emergency lighting, exits, and firefighting system were inspected in 2,787 projects. Additionally, 1,666 firefighting licenses were issued and renewed during the current year.

What are the key problems you face?

“One of the most important problems facing prevention inspectors in all governorates with shop owners and proprietors is the failure to comply with the preventive requirements set by the Kuwait Fire Force, or violators changing those requirements after the license is issued,” said Al-Qudaihi.

“We are working hard to oblige owners to comply with the fire requirements through continuous inspection tours throughout the year. The requirements have also been tightened, in cooperation with the Kuwait Municipality, to change the materials used in construction, ceilings, and canopies so that they are fire-resistant, and to open ventilation spaces for smoke to escape and prevent the spread of fire to neighboring shops,” added Al-Qudaihi.

Is basement storage still an ongoing issue?

Under the directives of the Acting Chief of the Kuwait Fire Force, Major General Khaled Abdullah Fahd, and following the unfortunate Al-Mangaf fire, it was noted that a large percentage of owners have committed to removing encroachments in their properties and implementing firefighting requirements, leading to a decrease in the number of basements rented as warehouses.

Residents are urged to inform the firefighting operations room or submit a complaint on the firefighting website or send a text message on WhatsApp number 65914431.

Al-Qudaihi also called on owners not to endanger lives by allowing basements in investment housing to be rented out. Such use is neither licensed nor permitted, as it jeopardizes the safety of those living in these complexes.

He warns owners against using basements for purposes other than those designated and renting them out, as well as the random storage of hazardous materials, chemicals, gases, carpentry, furniture, wedding office items, central kitchens, and workers’ housing. This makes the basement a time bomb that could explode at any time and burn everything. Inspectors from the prevention sector monitor such violations in Ahmadi Governorate. Many have been closed, and their owners punished after their violations were referred to the courts.

Some owners persist in violating fire safety requirements. What is your role in addressing this issue?

Al-Qudaihi said, “This is true, and we have seen it through some owners making modifications after issuing a fire permit. They do not realize that prevention inspectors continuously work to uncover this tampering and issue violations to the owners. There is also negligence in not maintaining elevators or renewing maintenance contracts and fire equipment, all of which are under the scrutiny and monitoring of inspectors.”

Streamlining processes and saving time through digital transformation

Brigadier Mohsen Al-Qudaihi highlighted that the prevention sector has successfully achieved results benefiting citizens and residents by digitizing many services. This transformation has made the review process easier, saving time, effort, and the hassle of paperwork, aiming to eliminate paper transactions by early next year.

He also emphasized the importance of obtaining a fire license for each facility and ensuring the presence of various firefighting equipment to handle any potential fires.

Digital transformation eases fire service reviews but challenges elderly users

Al-Qudaihi noted that while the digital transformation of fire services has pleased reviewers by relieving them from the hassle of paperwork, there is a problem for the elderly who complete their transactions through typists in the offices. The typist often uses their phone number, so messages about the transaction are sent to the typist instead of the owner. Consequently, the owner may become upset when they are unaware of the transaction’s status and think it is delayed.

Install smoke detectors, fire extinguishers

Brigadier Al-Qudaihi urged residents to install smoke detectors and fire extinguishers in their homes and emphasized the importance of using original electrical materials and devices to avoid overloading chargers, a major cause of fires.

200 new inspectors on the way

Al-Qudaihi noted that the Ahmadi Governorate Prevention Department currently has 20 inspectors, including officers, non-commissioned officers, and a number of female inspectors.

He acknowledged that this number is insufficient to cover the Ahmadi Governorate, where commercial activities and residential and industrial areas have increased over the past years. To address this, it is expected that 200 students will enter an inspection course this year to enhance the inspection force in all governorates.