Fire dept mulls to add helicopter to its present fleet

KOLKATA: The state Fire and Emergency Services department is planning to introduce helicopters in its fleet to strengthen the fire fighting mechanism.

"We already have a number of high rise buildings in the city. As Kolkata and its adjoining areas are witnessing a real estate boom, more multi-storeyed buildings are expected to come up.

Helicopters can be used for effective fire fighting in case of fire in high-rise buildings. A number of foreign countries are adept in aerial firefighting," said Sujit Bose, state Fire and Emergency Services minister.

In August last year, the department introduced 4 robots for tackling fires in high-rises

The robots can be used for extinguishing fire in high-rises and dousing chemical fires. They are fitted with sensors, for detecting the exact point of occurrence of fire from 100 metre distance and fight to weaken its intensity.

The department has also introduced fire balls for extinguishing fire in very narrow and congested places or in locked buildings, which can't be accessed easily.

When a fire ball is thrown into a burning room or place from any small gap, it douses the fire in 10 to 15 minutes. It contains ammonium phosphate and ammonium sulphate and does not explode, even if it accidentally drops on the ground. It bursts only when thrown into a fire.