The review is intended to prevent fires and explosions and protect school safety. Education facilities were told to provide staff, teachers, employees and students with information about school safety, fire prevention and firefighting rules and skills in forms suited to their conditions and school levels.
The information campaign should focus on responsibility, prevention, and the detection and handling of fire and explosion risks. Schools were told not to be careless when using fire and heat sources or electrical equipment.
Schools must provide guidance on evacuation skills and the use of on-site firefighting equipment. They must also place information about fire prevention, firefighting, rescue and emergency response in suitable locations.
The review must cover all conditions related to school security and safety, facilities, and fire prevention and firefighting systems. Units were told to pay particular attention to electrical systems, kitchens, laboratories, practical classrooms, storage rooms, libraries, classrooms, functional rooms and other areas at risk of fire or explosion.
Schools must check how equipment, supplies and flammable substances are arranged. Corridors, stairs, passageways, emergency exits and exit doors must not be blocked. Fire extinguishers, fire alarms, emergency lighting and evacuation signs must also be checked in practice.
The units must also prepare and update firefighting, rescue and emergency response plans so they can respond when an incident occurs.
For facilities under construction or renovation, and for schools where students study in borrowed or temporary premises, Hanoi's education department ordered more inspections. Classes may be held only when all safety conditions are met. Schools must not hold classes at an unsafe site.
Construction work inside school grounds must be fenced off and separated, with a separate route provided. Students must not be allowed to enter the work area.
Ward and commune people's committees are responsible for leading direct fire safety inspections at education facilities in their areas, in coordination with police and other relevant units. They must promptly identify shortcomings and require them to be fixed.
On the afternoon of Nov. 5, Hanoi police said responders found one person dead in the fire at Kim Lien Secondary School.
At about 12:18 p.m. the same day, authorities received a report of a fire at the school and sent eight fire engines and more than 60 officers and soldiers to carry out firefighting, rescue and emergency response.
The fire commander ordered officers to use specialized equipment to reach deeper areas and search for people in need of help. They also worked to contain the flames and prevent them from spreading to nearby structures.
Thanh Niên reported that the fire occurred in a one-story building with a corrugated metal roof and several rooms fitted with desks and teaching platforms. In September, the Kim Lien Ward People's Committee began construction of Kim Lien Secondary School on Luong Dinh Cua Street.
Sources: Thanh Niên
