Dubai: Bilal Syed, 30, who came to Dubai in September with dreams of earning money and securing a decent living, ended up as a quadriplegic in Rashid Hospital, within 28 days of his arrival, due to a fall from the top tier of his bunk bed in the labour accommodation.
He loved sports and the outdoors but will never be able to even lift his finger, let alone walk again, according to the prognosis of his condition. He received serious head and spinal injuries.
The heavy built semi-skilled labourer with a high school qualification from Lahore, Pakistan, had begun work at a metal fabrication unit. He suffered serious head and spinal injuries as he turned on his side on his bed which had no railings and fell from a height of 5.5 feet.
Pam Gouri, volunteer from Valley of Love, told Gulf News that such injuries were resulting in serious loss of productivity and quality of life for these poor workers. “Every year many white collar workers fall from bunk beds and suffer from lacerations, sprains and fractures. But as volunteers we attend to at least 4-5 cases of serious spinal injuries rendering the individual either a paraplegic or quadriplegic.”
Last year, an Indian white collar worker, Bala Krishna, succumbed to his injuries. Last month, Noor-ul–Islam, a 28-year old labourer, was sent back to Bangladesh after his spinal injuries from a similar fall left him paralysed from the neck down.
Mohammad Hanif, another white collar worker at a printing press, had a similar fall in December, 2012, from the top of a three-tier bunk bed, from a height of 9 feet.
It is a common practice for workers renting private accommodation to cram at least four bunk beds, with an additional tier created by modifying the structure with additional metal pipes to accommodate some more. Freelance painters, cooks and beauty salon workers who have to pay for their own accommodation try to bring down the rent by using these means.
Gyan Bahadur, a Nepali cook in Bur Dubai, lives in a rented accommodation that costs 2,700 per month and the nine roommates share the expense. “This expense does not include electricity and water and Wi-Fi for which we pay separately.”
Antonia, a beauty salon worker in Bur Dubai, said that she lived in a large room crammed with 16 people and each had to pay Dh700 per month for the bed space. “The electricity, water and cooking gas charges are an additional Dh180, but I have no choice as this accommodation is closest to the salon and saves precious time and money that I will otherwise have to spend on the Metro or taxi fares.” she added.
Antonia earns a salary of Dh2,000 per month and she says many girls in her room earn even less. “So they quite naturally are looking to save some money. The bed down is rented at Dh500 and the one on top is Dh400. So people try to alter the space between the lower bed and floor to accommodate another mattress and rent this space out for Dh300 to bring down the costs,” she explained
This was what Hanif and his room mates had done, altering the bed space with additional pipes which made the structure unstable. After spending nearly seven months and two weeks in Rashid Hospital, he was sent back to Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan.
Speaking to Gulf News from Dera Ghazi Khan, Hanif, 32, talked about his nightmare: “Treatment has helped me move my fingers a bit; I can get up from bed and have gained urinary bladder control. But I have two daughters and cannot work to support my family. I live with my brother’s family and they help out. I cannot afford the treatment which costs approximately Rs10,000 per month (Dh600) and just do the physiotherapy and treatment intermittently. The future looks so dark and I have no hope of any improvement,” he said.
In the meanwhile Syed who underwent spinal surgery at Rashid Hospital holds out hope of some improvement in some time. “I am feeling better and will walk,” he whispers defiantly when asked about his health. His brothers, who take turns keeping vigil by his bedside, pray fervently for a miracle.
Can bunk bed falls be prevented?
While the labour law makes it mandatory for organisations to provide bunk beds with mattresses for all their employees, many companies try to skimp on the cost by going in for cheap quality bunk beds.
The standard bunk beds are made of 2mm steel sheets measuring 6.5X3.5 feet with a distance of 1.5 feet between the two tiers. The height from the ground of the upper tier is an average 5.5 feet. While these are the sturdy variety, their design is unsafe as all bunk beds in labour accommodation have no railings to prevent a fall from the top tier.
A Sharjah Industrial Area salesman for bunk beds said his organisation got bulk orders from labour accommodations. “Our beds which come from India are made of 2mm steel sheet costing Dh250 for a single piece. However, bulk orders of 100 or more beds help us slash the price by Dh50 per piece.”
The salesman said he was aware of flimsy beds made of 1mm steel sheet with lighter screws costing Dh 120 per piece being sold in the market. “When workers have to rent their bed space they look for cheaper alternatives and go for these beds that can cost them approximately Dh80 in bulk buying. But these beds are unsafe as they are unstable,” he said.
Gouri called for stringent regulation of bunk bed qualities. “While it is understandable that labour accommodations want to utilise the vertical space, it is very important to have set specifications for these bunk beds which must be strong, sturdy, steady and have railings on top to prevent such tragedies in the future.”
