VietNamNet Bridge – According to the Ho Chi Minh City Fire-fighting Police Department, all petrol stations in the city will be checked from now to the end of July 2013. Under this plan, inspectors will consider the legality and anti-fire plans of all 514 filling stations in the city.

13 people injured in Hanoi’s petrol station fire

A petrol station in fire in Tan Binh District, HCM City last December.

Earlier, Mr. Le Tan Buu, deputy director of the Fire-fighting Police Department, stated that petrol stations found flouting fire safety laws could be shut down by the end of this year.

According to Buu, 93 petrol stations had been closed for safety reasons since 2007 when a plan to relocate them took effect. Of the 514 left in the city, 107, some opened before 1975, do not meet safety regulations issued last year.

To mitigate the threat of fire at petrol stations, the Fire-fighting Police Department has recommended that the city authorities should relocate them by 2020 and get the older ones upgraded to meet the safety standards, Buu said.

The department is focused on improving people's awareness of fire prevention, strengthening the fire department and modernizing its equipment, he added.

It already has the most modern vehicles in the world like 30-meter-ladder trucks and others made in France. The authorities have approved four rescue helicopters for the department by 2020 and two more by 2025, he said.

The plan to check all petrol stations in HCM City was approved after the fire at a gas station in Hanoi on June 3.

Tran Chanh Nghia