Kochi: Anilkumar travelled all the way from Malappuram to Ernakulam to do what he could to help the firefighters who have been carrying out a hectic operation at the solid waste treatment plant at Brahmapuram for over a week.
He is one among the many volunteers of the Civil Defence wing trained by the Kerala Fire and Rescue Services. Such volunteers have landed in Brahmapuram from different parts of the city and have been helping the force as per its instructions for days.
They work in turns and Anilkumar was on the field – mounds of smoldering garbage – on Saturday, 10th day since the operation started.
It was around 3 pm and Anilkumar was taking a break. He had a headache, like several of his fellow firefighters – both in the force and the volunteer team – who have been battling the toxic smoke stemming from the burning garbage for hours.
Health threat
The smoke, in the past 10 days, has travelled all over the Kochi city and its suburbs, raising concerns over the health risks it poses to the people. The health department, though late, has issued an advisory instructing people in the vulnerable category – those with lung and heart diseases, elderly, children and pregnant women – to stay cautious and indoors as far as possible.
Medical practitioners, in both the public and private sectors, have already warned of possible health issues the toxic gases and poisonous particles in the smoke can cause. While the intensity of the threat could be different for the people staying away from the plant according to the density and direction of the smoke, the threat is a round-the-clock reality for those working amid the garbage to douse the fire.
“Almost half of the Fire and Rescue Services personnel have some kind of lung issues resulting from their confrontation with smoke. So one can imagine how difficult an operation like this is for them,” a senior officer told Onmanorama.
The officer who spoke about the health hazards also recollected how he battled bronchitis after a firefighting mission at a plastic factory.
"It is difficult to wear the face mask – which is a must to resist the toxic fumes at least to some extend – as it makes breathing difficult," he said.
The officer revealed several firefighters at Brahmapuram have been complaining of headache and related issues due to the over exposure to the smoke.
The health department has opened a camp at the fire site to tend to those in need.
Unprecedented crisis, unprepared force
The crisis at Brahmapuram is unprecedented for the Fire and Rescue Services because of its nature and volume. Rarely does the force have to engage in such prolonged operation and the incident has exposed how ill-prepared the system is to face such a situation.
The force has adopted the strategy of digging deep into the source of the fire and dousing it at its roots using water. The strategy has been validated by a monitoring committee appointed by the Kerala High Court.
The men in uniform work on the site wearing gumboots and face masks and helmets. It is the lack of advanced breathing apparatus sets (BAS) that make their job difficult and put their health at risk. BAS is an apparatus, usually consisting of tanks of air or oxygen and a mouthpiece, that enables firefighters to breath in difficult conditions. The sets the force has lasts only 30 minutes and needs to refill after that. They are of not much use in a prolonged operation like the one in Brahmapuram, a source in the force said.
Brahmapuram is offering new lessons to the state and its agencies. Its earlier operations at the landslide-hit Kavalappara and the mission at Malampuzha to rescue a youth who was stuck in a hill cleft were also eye-openers.
