The recent fire in the building of the Government of Tulcán (Ecuador), whose rehabilitation will cost US $ 3 million, revealed the lack of security in the buildings of that municipality. According to the engineer Ramiro Gordillo in statements made to the local newspaper El Comercio, the elevators work but their level of safety is not optimal.
As mentioned by the professional, one of the reasons for not complying with all the rules is the age of the properties.
For Rubén Fuentes, head of the Prevention Department of the Tulcán Fire Department, there are minimum measures to be able to talk about a safe building, these are an evacuation route duly demarcated and communicated to all people and, at least, one extinguisher for each floor. Likewise, there must be a fire cabinet for each plant and an independent drinking water line that supplies the necessary amount to put out fires.
According to the security expert of the Provincial Government of Carchi, they have all these conditions and even evacuation and contingency plans. He also commented that one of the most common problems in the city's buildings is that they do not have emergency exits.
On the other hand, Fuentes said that according to the safety regulations, no building should be built that is more than three or four stories high without first managing a permit with the Fire Department. He also explained that, as stated in article 130 of the regulations of the Fire Department, these assets must have firefighting areas with an area of 500 square meters and have enclosures of fire-resistant materials that prevent the entry of smoke.
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