Traders’ random occupation of spaces inside markets and violation of fire safety corridors outside them put many markets in Hanoi at risk of fire, a survey by Tuoi Tre has found.
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The survey was carried out several days after the entire Quang Ngai market in central Quang Ngai Province was consumed by a violent fire that caused a total damage of about VND150 billion (US$7.2 million).
Dong Xuan market in Hoan Kiem District, for example, opens onto four streets: Hang Duong, Hang Khoai, Nguyen Thien Thuat and Cau Dong, but market goers can only enter the market from Hang Duong. The other three front entrances were blocked by traders who set up kiosks and stalls, as observed by Tuoi Tre on February 14.
If a fire or an explosion occurred, firefighters would find it hard to access the market in time and the people inside may have difficulty making their escape.
Just a street away from Dong Xuan is Cau Dong market, a small 3-storey market overloaded with hundreds of traders, who availed themselves of every inch of space available inside the market to store or display goods, leaving only a small entrance and exit that open onto Cau Dong street.
The market’s gate, on Nguyen Thien Thuat Street, has also been blocked by traders.
“In the event of a fire, we do not know how to get out of the market,” said a trader.
At the Hom-Duc Vien market in Hai Ba Trung District, Tuoi Tre found a lot of fire extinguishers placed on top of each other in the security guards’ room. But a shopper commented, “At a building where I saw a fire drill, there is enough space in the staircase for the firefighters to get the fire hose from the ground floor to the upper floors. In this market, I do not know whether that is possible or not.”
Tran Ngoc Thinh, chief security guard at the Dong Xuan market, told Tuoi Tre that the fire that occurred there 20 years ago remained a valuable lesson to those who are concerned about fire safety.
Therefore, Thinh said, the market management board often called on traders to comply with fire safety regulations.
“Although the market is ‘blocked’ on three sides, with many fire hydrants placed in different places, we can still ensure the effectiveness of our fire prevention and control.”
However, many issues remained to be improved. For example, despite market regulations and penalties, traders have randomly occupied market spaces, covered fire equipment with their goods and violated the fire safety corridor around the market, he said.
During the survey, Tuoi Tre found that not only these three markets, but many others in Hanoi, including Nghia Tan and Ninh Hiep, are also exposed to the risk of fire.
| HCMC tightens control over fire safety at markets After the large fire that destroyed Quang Ngai market on February 9, the Ho Chi Minh City Fire Prevention and Control Police Department has ordered all its units to strengthen inspection of how markets, trade centers and supermarkets across the city comply with the municipal fire safety regulations. Fire safety violations at markets are mainly reckless use of electricity, use of flames and heat in banned areas, inappropriate arrangement or storage of goods, and insufficient fire extinguishing equipment, said Major General Tran Trieu Duong, director of the department. The city now has 161 markets, 19 trade centers and 47 supermarkets, most of them are in inner districts.
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An exit in the Binh Tay Market, HCMC, is occupied by traders to store goods (Photo: Tuoi Tre)
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