DUBAI, 15 July 2007 — Starting September, the safety of workers at construction sites in Dubai will be monitored by a special committee comprising representatives from Dubai police, Dubai municipality and the Civil Defense.
The committee will organize inspection teams to ensure safety regulations are being adhered to at construction sites. The teams will especially work toward cutting down the number of fires in high-rise buildings, a problem that has plagued Dubai recently.
Statistics from the Forensic Science and Criminology revealed that in 12 months since June 2006, 14 fires have taken place in Dubai, 10 of them in towers under construction and four in other buildings.
Last year saw six fires, while the first six months of this year witnessed eight.
According to Dubai police chief Lt.
Gen. Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, the real estate sector in Dubai needs a working mechanism to ensure construction workers are safe.
The safety of people is top priority followed by property safety, he said, adding that the committee will arrange a media campaign to educate workers, contractors and construction companies about safety at construction sites. Tamim added that Brig. Rashid Thani Al-Matroushi, director of Dubai’s Civil Defense, would head the inspection team.
Describing the precautions that need to be taken to ensure safety at construction sites in Dubai, Col. Ahmed Khalifa ibn Hammad, said that such measures should first focus on the human element and then on the site itself.
“Safety does not mean just wearing protective clothes but also means ensuring that the site is safe,” he said, adding that most fires that take place at construction sites are caused by flammable materials.
“Laborers are sometimes not careful when handling some of these materials and as a result fires take place. Blazes at construction sites spread quicker than in other buildings because there are no walls or doors to impend their deadly progress,” he said, adding that the committee will take such issues into consideration and focus on educating workers.
