20160312 India Memnagar fire puzzles experts
India Mar 12 2016 “Apartment houses”
Dead : dead 1 to 4 Burnout : 0 or unknown Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Memnagar fire puzzles experts
Updated: 2016-03-12-13:59
The cause of fire at Rajhans Apartment in Memnagar, where 41-year old Niral Rajpal and his five-year old daughter Ariana lost their lives, still puzzles fire safety experts. Niral himself was an electric supplies contractor and his father is an electrical engineer – they had used the best available material for the wiring.
Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services (AFES) officials said the cause of ignition could be a malfunction of the miniature circuit-breaker (MCB) – which can be deduced from the nature of the fire.
“The incident underlines the importance of regular maintenance of electric lines and equipment. We have seen several incidents where despite installation of MCB and earth-leakage circuit breaker (ELCB), the switch couldn’t function due to obstruction. While cleaning, people wipe the electric meter but many never open boxes containing the meters and switches and everything from pigeons to lizards can be be found in them,” said an AFES official.
The official added that rats and squirrels are a major hazard in some areas as they gnaw away the insulation on wires, exposing the copper which can overheat and start a fire. As summer sets in, most fire cases involve a scenario like this. When the ECB doesn’t function properly, the current bypasses the mechanism and doesn’t allow it to trip.
Web Source: THE TIMES OF INDIA
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Memnagar-fire-puzzles-experts/articleshow/51370662.cms