The Civil Defense needs to be restructured to become a “professional task force” able to respond rapidly when dangerous accidents occur, said Maj. Gen. Abdullah Mohammed Ghanam, assistant director general of operations for the Civil Defense.
Ghanam pointed out that the preliminary investigation into a fire at the petrochemical plant in Jubail found that it occurred due to negligence, a local newspaper quoted him as saying.
The preliminary investigation indicated the incident happened because of the negligence of workers in taking safety precautions before cleaning a tank. He also stressed that violators will be penalized, especially those who circumvent safety requirements under the pretext of reducing material costs.
He also unveiled a project that will use engineering and technical offices licensed by the Directorate General of Civil Defense, to ensure better monitoring and preventive measures. The project is still being studied and analyzed.
Ghanam said that the General Directorate of Civil Defense has completed the first phase of a plan to deploy civil defense services across the country. A total of 200 new civil defense centers have been set up to cover the new industrial and economic cities throughout the Kingdom.
He said that the Directorate General of Civil Defense is working with the royal commissions of Jubail and Yanbu, and the Ministry of Trade and Industry, represented by the association of industrial and technology zones. He added that they are now in the process of preparing a memorandum of understanding because of the many accidents caused by negligence.
The general said industrial establishments in the Kingdom are subject to regulations and stringent requirements to ensure the prevention of fires. These regulations include those issued by the Civil Defense Council and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
He said the civil defense is employing technically skilled officers and individuals in industrial, chemical, electrical and architectural engineering. They are keeping pace with modern technology, and use the expertise and global systems of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) from the United States, and the Occupational Health and Safety Organization.
He pointed out that a number of employees participated in specialized courses in Britain, France, the US, Canada, Australia and other regional and global countries.
He said there many responsible people who are aware God is watching them and are patriotic. "We often find them complying with the regulations and requirements and do more than required of them. We thank them for that and are honored to have them among us.”
However, there are those who do not want to implement proper safety and security measures to protect lives and property because they think it is too costly, he added.
He said there also some people who do not use proper safety measures and mechanisms and rather depend on their own fallible human skills. This is dangerous and can result in accidents and fires, he said.
Regarding the civil defense plans to reduce factory fires, Ghanam added that the organization's plans are updated continuously throughout the year. He noted that these plans are based on the awareness and education of owners and employees of these factories and the use of devices and smart phones in the field for follow-up work.
He said the organization does not allow factories to operate unless they have construction and occupational safety measures in place.
Civil Defense upgrades services with new centers
