Water problem for fire-fighters

Agni, the twowheeled firefighter

Three years ago, 624 fire hydrant valves used to fill the water tankers attached to fire-fighters were installed in the city. They are connected to the water mains controlled and operated by Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB).

However, the hydrants are of little use now since the BWSSB does not want to supply water to them due to scarcity. "The water supply board told us that drinking water supply to the people is more important," an official in the fire service department told MiD DAY.

Now, the fire service has to fill their tankers using the over 25 designated filling points provided by BWSSB in the city.

"Wherever there are overhead tanks, we can fill our water tankers there." However, we don't get rights to use any new overhead tanks automatically when they are built, he added.

To get over this problem, the fire service is looking into being self-sufficient. "We now have four water bowsers with a capacity of 16,000 litres, apart from some borewells," he said.

Did you know?
The new techniques of fire-fighting now involve a bike and jeep. It uses the MIST technology that resembles a gun. Here, each drop of water is converted into 1,600 microns, which help to contain a fire faster. Agni, the two-wheeler fire-fighting unit carries two 9-litre backpacks and Varuna, the jeep-mount fire extinguisher, carries a 9- and 50-litre tank. These allow the fire service personnel to enter narrow lanes much faster.

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