VietNamNet Bridge – Since the beginning of the year about 80% of all high-rise fires have occurred in Hanoi, with the number one reason being electrical malfunctions.  

One of the earliest examples was the fire immediately following Tet, which started at 4 am on February 3. The fire began on the 3rd floor consumed the structure up to the 21st floor of an apartment building no. 21 on Nguyen Chi Thanh Street. Residents claimed that the alarm system gave them no warning.

The most recent fire had happened on October 1, at another apartment building no. 17T4, in Cau Giay District, panicking residents and destroying a significant amount of property.

According to firefighters, in nine months of 2012, 15 high-rise fires were recorded in Vietnam, 12 of which were in Hanoi and 3 in HCM city. The causes in some of the cases are under continuing investigation.

Currently, Vietnam has over 5,000 multi-storey buildings; 927 have more than nine floors and are located for the large part in big cities such as HCMC (440 buildings), Hanoi (368 buildings), Haiphong (36 buildings). In Hanoi there are 223 with nine or more storeys currently in the planning phase.

At a conference on the management of high-rises, held by Vietnam National Real Estate Association, the head of the Police Department of Fire Prevention said, though it have not caused an inordinate amount of damage to property, it has caused great concern among the people who live in the buildings.

The alarm and sprinklers systems of many apartment buildings have been poorly designed by investors seeking to take shortcuts during construction. Many have narrowed emergency exits, making it difficult for residents to escape during a fire.

A representative from the fire department proposed upgrades to old buildings, and even discontinuing the operation of those which do not meet with safety standards.

Nguyen Trong Hien, a representative of Hanoi Department of Construction said that managing activities play an important factor in maintaining buildings. Though Hanoi has over 320 high-rises, there are only has 26 management boards.

The establishment of management boards is considered to be the most efficient way to ensure the safety of apartment buildings. The municipal Department of Construction has lent it's support for buildings to hire management boards.

VNN/DTriNews