A widely quoted Arabic proverb is “The carpenter’s door is broken.” It refers to someone who is always repairing things at other people’s houses while his own is in need. The carpenter I am talking about here is the Civil Defense Department. Last week while trying to rescue a worker trapped inside a sewage pit in the northern city of Hail, a civil defense officer died and his colleague was seriously injured as a result of inhaling toxic gases. The men bravely tried to save a life while risking their own. They did what was required of them but for one very important thing — they went into the pit without putting on gas masks which are a requirement for this kind of rescue operation.
It was a tragic incident and this was not the first time that officers have been injured or killed while trying to save lives. Had proper precautions been taken, perhaps the injuries and deaths would not have occurred. I can’t understand why civil defense men go into manholes and wells that often contain poisonous gases without gas masks. Is it out of ignorance of what should be done? Or is it out of indifference or a failure to realize the presence of danger? Whatever the answer, the solution lies in informing the rescue workers very clearly and precisely of exactly what the situation is and also of what must be done. If our civil defense lacks gas masks needed to protect its men, then we are faced with a very serious problem. If the civil defense — which is supposed to be familiar with safety arrangements — ends up losing its officers for lack of proper safety measures, what can we expect of ordinary people? The officer who died in the Hail accident was the victim of a serious shortcoming in safety arrangements.
Who is responsible for what happened to him? Is it the department that failed to provide the gas masks or the officer himself who, for whatever reason, simply did not bother to put it on? Even if the department provided the gas masks and the officer failed to wear it, this does not absolve the department of responsibility. Following orders and strictly adhering to safety precautions should be the first lesson any officer in the civil defense learns. The department must ensure that its officers follow instructions exactly. Otherwise, if there is no change, this means more accidents will take place with both the public and civil defense officers being the unnecessary victims.
