Kathmandu, January 11

Kathmandu Metropolitan City has successfully conducted the test of dry riser system installed to control fire at one of the narrow lanes in Kathmandu Metropolitan City.

Ancient settlements in KMC all have narrow lanes which make it almost impossible for firefighters to access the incident spot in case of fire. Thousands of people living in these areas are at high risk of fire and controlling fire is a huge challenge for fire fighting agencies in Kathmandu.

Test of the pilot project was conducted in a 200-metre narrow lane at Janabahal, Ason. For the project, Ward No 25 of KMC had laid a four-inch wide pipeline in the lane with eight dry risers. A dry riser is a normally empty pipe that can be externally connected to pressurised water.

The pilot project was introduced with the support of Juddha Barun Yantra at Basantapur. As part of the test, a fire safety drill was also conducted.

The drill was conducted as a safety measure against incidents of fire and also to make people aware about the disaster risk reduction techniques. Hundreds of people watched the drill.

Inaugurating the dry riser test, KMC Mayor Bidhya Sundar Shakya said the metropolis had given top priority to disaster risk reduction and added that KMC would instal dry riser systems at various other places of the city. “We have already established fire fighting departments at six different wards of KMC, and we are planning to buy more fire trucks in future to reduce the disaster risks,” he informed.

Deputy Mayor Hari Prabha Khadgi said, “Every ward office will be equipped with machinery and advanced technology to reduce disaster risk.