Manama: An 11-year-old girl died after she jumped from the fourth floor to escape fire flames ravaging their apartment in Kuwait City.
The girl’s mother and infant brother have been transferred to the intensive care unit at a local hospital where they are being treated.
The tragedy occurred after a fire broke out in the apartment of the Egyptian family in the Khitan area, local news site Al Aan reported on Tuesday.
Fire engines from three stations were dispatched to deal with the situation, but they discovered that a young girl had in panic jumped out of the window. She was taken to hospital, but she did not survive.
Readers sympathized with the family and offered their condolences, but insisted on the need by the authorities to reinforce instructions to make active fire protection equipment and fire detection systems, such as fire sprinkler systems, mandatory in all buildings.
“Officials have to be very strict about forcing all building owners to have fire alarms,” a blogger, writing under the moniker of Stranger, wrote. “Automatic sprinkles should be mandatory before any building is approved by the authorities, just like hotels. Whoever has the authority to reinforce such measures and does not rise up to his responsibilities will have to answer before God for the death of this young girl and others in fires that could have been prevented.”
Another blogger said that legal action should taken to make sure such tragedies are not repeated.
“The owners of buildings are responsible for the tragedies that strike families because they failed to comply with the required standards,” Wasta posted. “Unfortunately, these proprietors are interested mainly in making money without any serious consideration for the safety of the people in the flats. The public prosecution should be alerted about such cases and should, in this case, charge the building owners with causing the death of innocent people.”
