Accra, Dec. 10, GNA - Officials of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) on Thursday inspected some high-rise buildings (buildings which have more than five floors) in Accra to ascertain their compliance with fire regulations and specific requirements of the Service.

The places visited were the Ridge Towers which has 15 floors with two basements, the Heritage Towers which also has 15 floors with one basement and the Victor Morrison Towers which is the tallest building in Accra with 16 floors and one basement. The towers are situated at Ridge. During the visit it was detected that all the buildings inspected had all the facilities that the Fire Service required for the construction of high rising buildings in the country.

These included hydrants pit used for water storage, fire hose cabinets used for storing water hose and other fire fighting equipment, inlet breeching which machines use to pump water to upper floors in case of fire outbreak and also served as underground water backup system. The rest included emergency exits which are both built in and outside the towers, smoke detectors, fire bells and strobe lights which blink in case of fire outbreaks and emergency exit assembly. Paa Kwesi Adutwum, Assistant Director of GNFS Fire Safety, said there were more than 30 high-rise buildings in Accra and appealed to all prospective contractors of high rise buildings to contact the Fire Service for fire certification.

He deplored the high rate of fire outbreaks in Accra and cited the old nature of the buildings without fire prevention equipment as the main cause. "Most of these buildings were put up far before the Legislative Instrument 17/24 (2003) which talks about fire safety requirement for buildings to be passed," Paa Adutwum said. He pledged the commitment of the GNFS in ensuring that old buildings in the countries complied with the requirements of the Fire Service. Paa Adutwum cited electrical faults, gas leakages and the use of flammable materials as being the main causes of fire outbreaks in Accra and urged all employers to educate their staff on fire fighting and evacuation drills. 10 Dec. 09