GREAT BRAK RIVER NEWS - Mossel Bay Municipality has embarked on a project to install smoke alarms in informal dwellings as a means to end the loss of life associated with fires in informal areas.
In recent weeks, fires have claimed the lives of three people in informal settlements, one of them the three-year-old Jaylene Muller.
Jaylene's mother, Annelie Muller, also died in the fire. In a separate fire, Hilda Stuurman (46), died on 6 October. Also, a building used as a church was destroyed in a fire recently. At the monthly council meeting on Thursday, 26 October, the executive mayor, Alderman Harry Levendal, urged the municipality to investigate how occupants of informal dwellings in backyards may be assisted in terms of fire prevention.
"The current policy allows the municipality to assist in cases where dwellings have been erected on municipal land.
"However, when a dwelling, such as a backyard structure, is burnt down, it is deemed to be on private land and as a result, the occupants do not qualify for municipal aid. The reality, though, is that many residents live in backyard circumstances due to the shortage of available housing."
The majority of deaths due to fires take place in residential homes as occupants become trapped or overcome by smoke before they can escape. Most fire fatalities in the home take place at night while people are asleep, when olfactory functions cannot be relied upon to provide protection if a fire occurs. Smoke alarms are associated with a reduced risk of death for children and adults. They provide an early warning system that alerts people and permits time for an escape before a fire spreads. These low-cost devices can easily be installed and maintained in most households, with promising possibilities for community installations also emerging recently.
Lower casualty rates
"Fires detected by smoke alarms are associated with lower casualty rates, more rapid discovery, and less property damage." municipal spokesperson Colin Puren said.
"The smoke alarms alert occupants by giving off a loud, audible noise which informs them of a fire in its incipient stage. The resident can then make use of a jug or bucket of water to extinguish the fire easily.
"The type of smoke alarm that Mossel Bay Municipality will install in informal settlements areas has a battery life expectancy of fifteen years, which make its operation durable.
"The project is being implemented in the Great Brak River area and then will be escalated to all informal settlements in the Mossel Bay municipal area of jurisdiction," Puren said.
Mossel Bay executive councillors Niklaas Booisen (black jacket) and Cliffie Bayman (maroon jacket) visited when smoke detectors were being installed in informal dwellings in the Great Brak River area on Friday, 27 October.
ARTICLE: NICKEY LE ROUX, MOSSEL BAY ADVERTISER NEWS EDITOR
PHOTOS: DAVE VAN DER MERWE
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