Abu Dhabi: More than 15,000 buildings have been connected to the nationwide Hassantuk smart fire alarm system so far and 150,000 will be by the end of 2021, according to a top official.
More than 20,000 buildings had also been surveyed and were ready to be linked to the system in the coming months, it was added.
Ayman Al Sebeyi, General Manager of Hassantuk, said, “So far, we have connected over 15,398 buildings across the UAE, which covers almost 10 per cent of the whole project as we aim to link 150,000 with the smart fire alarm system by the end of 2021.
“We are sure that we would achieve our target by the end of 2021. Our plan is to finish linking 45 per cent buildings in 2020 and the remaining 45 per cent in 2021,” he added.
What is Hassantuk?
Hassantuk is a fire safety system that links fire alarms and smoke detectors to a centralised Alarm Receiving Centre where it can be verified in less than 120 seconds. Launched in 2017 by the Ministry of Interior in partnership with Injazat Data Systems, the project aims to link more than 500,000 buildings with Civil Defence across the country. The project started with residential and commericial towers in October 2017 and then launched the same for villas in October 2018. A team of 30 people in Abu Dhabi monitor Hassantuk’s operation centre around the clock. The Alarm Receiving Centre has a giant screen where monitors can zoom in on areas where fires are reported across the country.
Challenges
Despite the progress, Al Sebeyi said there were many challenges to overcome. “The alarms in many old buildings are not compatible with the system, so we are working closely with the Ministry of Interior and Civil Defence in each emirate to address these challenges,” he said.
“We do door-to-door inspections across the country to identify whether buildings are ready for installation or not, if they are not we inform Civil Defence, who will work with the owner to make it ready for the installation of a smart fire alarm,” he added.
Incidents
Two incidents that prompted the creation of Hassantuk were the deaths of seven children who suffocated to death in a fire in their villa in Rol Dhadna in Fujairah in January 2018, after which His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, directed Civil Defence to fit fire alarms linked to a centralised system into every Emirati home. In October 2018 eight members of an Emirati family died in a villa fire in Bani Yas, Abu Dhabi.
Cost of linking towers
One time Installation Charges:
Small building (Category 1) Dh2,257
Small building (Category 2) Dh4,147
Medium building (Category 3) Dh9,310
Big building (Category 4) Dh18,620
Very big building (Category 5) Dh23,750
* There will also be annual registration, monitoring and maintenance fees per annum, determined as per the category.
For more information on Hassantuk visit https://hassantuk.moi.gov.ae/index-en.html or call toll free on 800 22220.
