Delhi to have ‘fire control room’ vehicles along lines of PCR vans

Delhi Fire Services (DFS) is launching “fire control room (FCR)” vehicles, which will be smaller than the usual fire tenders, but help shrink response time, senior DFS officials aware of the plan said

Delhi Fire Services (DFS) is launching “fire control room (FCR)” vehicles, which will be smaller than the usual fire tenders, but help shrink response time, senior DFS officials aware of the plan said.

The idea is to have such tenders placed in strategic locations around the Capital, much like the police control room (PCR) vans of the Delhi Police.(DFS/Representative)

The idea is to have such tenders placed in strategic locations around the Capital, much like the police control room (PCR) vans of the Delhi Police.

DFS’s plan has been approved by the Delhi’s government’s home department and the officials said they are now looking to buy “customised fire tenders” equipped with “state-of-the-art” firefighting and communication technology by the middle of this year.

“DFS will become the first fire department in the country to have these mobile fire tenders. Our initial plan is to procure 50 mobile fire control vans and deploy them at strategic locations across the city. The number will gradually increase and the number of such first responders may reach 200, even more. It will be a game changer in bringing down the response time of our firefighters. Our proposal has got a nod from the government. We are now in the budgeting and tendering process,” said DFS chief Atul Garg.

To be sure, all fire tenders are mobile, but they are also huge, usually stationed in designated DFS offices, and then have to negotiate their way through Delhi’s traffic when they respond to an emergency.

Fire department data shows that its control room receives nearly 30,000 calls related to fire, rescue of birds and animals, building collapses, and other incidents every year. That’s around 82 calls a day; of this, on average, 43 are related to fire incidents. An analysis of the calls and the subsequent firefighting operations shows that the average response time to calls about fires is between 10 and 15 minutes, said a senior DFS official.

“By having the mobile fire tenders, we will be able to improve our response time, reducing it by nearly half. The idea is to reach any fire spot at the quickest time possible and begin the firefighting operation before the bigger fire tenders reach. It will help us in containing the fire at its initial stage and averting major tragedies,” the DFS official added, asking not to be identified.

DFS officials said that the purchase of FCR tenders was delayed following the arrest of Delhi government’s minister Satyendra Jain, who was overseeing the department last year. They added that the arrest of deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, who was looking after Jain’s departments, may delay the process further.

Explaining the motivation for acquiring the tenders, DFS chief Garg said that the department a high-level committee to analyse response times over the past 10 years, identify reasons for delays, and find solutions. The committee completed its study and submitted its report last year. The committee was of the opinion that except for fire incidents caused by any kind of explosions, most could have been prevented from turning into major or medium fires had they been contained in the initial stage. By the time fire tenders reached and began their firefighting operations, the fire had spread, said Garg.

“The committee recommended that a quick response team should be formed to douse the flames at their origination stage. We held internal meetings, decided to form a fleet of fire responder fire tenders, and accordingly apprised the government, which approved it,” he added.

As a pilot, the first lot of 50 mobile fire tenders will be stationed in areas prone to fires, subject to one or more of three conditions: one, the nearest fire station should be more than 3km away; two, the area should be congested and with narrow lanes; and three, a fire station is just 1km away but high traffic prevents a fire tender from getting to the spot fast.

Explaining the specifications of the mobile fire tenders, DFS director Garg said that each vehicle will be fitted with a water tank with a capacity of 500 to 1,000 litres and a separate tank for storing foam. Apart from firefighting tools, the vehicle will also have a foldable ladder that can reach a height of around eight metres. The tenders will be small four-wheelers that can easily enter narrow lanes and manoeuvre around congested streets. Each vehicle will be fitted with the global positioning system (GPS) tracker and a tablet for receiving calls from the control room.

“Each FCR will be linked with the fire control room. Apart from receiving directions from the control room to rush to the fire spot, the fire tender will move around the specific location, and anyone can directly inform the firemen present inside about fires. Each vehicle will have a driver, a lead fireman, and two firefighters,” added Garg.