The Kerala government on Sunday said that the fire at Kochi’s Brahmapuram waste plant has been brought under control and is expected to be doused by evening.
State Industries Minister P Rajeev and Health Minister Veena George told reporters after a high-level meeting at the Ernakulam district collectorate that people need not stay indoors as recommended on Saturday and go out taking precautions like wearing N95 masks. Can
However, people with respiratory problems, such as asthma, the elderly, children and pregnant women, should try and avoid exposure to smoke and wear a mask when outside, the ministers said.
George also said that city hospital records do not indicate any medical cases due to the smoke.
Nevertheless, all government hospitals and medical colleges in the city have made arrangements like dedicated beds for people affected by the smoke generated due to the fire.
In addition, two oxygen parlors and a round-the-clock medical team of doctors have been set up at Brahmapuram.
Regarding the decisions taken in the meeting, Rajeev said that all the stakeholders were of the view that coordinated efforts need to be made to deal with such situations.
Instead, it was decided to set up a system consisting of a coordination committee consisting of representatives of Kochi Corporation, fire services, police, health services, electricity board and fire safety officials from Bharat Petroleum and CIAL.
It was also decided in the meeting that a panel comprising officials of the corporation and panchayat where the garbage plant has been set up, and the district collector and the local MLA, would meet every three months to discuss the problems in that area.
Another decision taken in the meeting, according to Rajiv, is that after resolving the current issue, the corporation will take immediate steps to ensure proper road connectivity to the area.
The minister further said that as a result of the fire which has been raging for more than 3 days, garbage collection has come to a standstill in Kochi and therefore, it was decided in the meeting that the corporation and the district collector would take steps to put in place one. Temporary arrangement for removal of garbage from the city.
Local self-government minister MB Rajesh will solve the problem of bio-mining which is not happening in the waste plant for some time.
Earlier in the day, a fire official engaged in extinguishing the fire at the waste plant said that it was taking time to extinguish the fire because there were layers of plastic underneath that got hot and prevented the fire above from cooling down.
Rain and lack of wind also thwarted efforts to extinguish the fire, and a second fire broke out during operations.
He said that fire tenders have been called from the divisions of other districts like Kottayam and Alappuzha.
Apart from all this, the phosgene gas produced by the fire is causing nausea, dizziness among the firefighters, which also affected the operations.
He said that it is expected that the fire will be extinguished by evening.
According to the police, as of 7 am there were 25 fire units, including those from Thrissur, Kottayam and Idukki districts as well as tenders from the Indian Navy and Bharat Petroleum, battling the blaze and more were expected to arrive.
The air quality was found to be poor in some parts of the port city this morning due to the fire.
According to data from the Kerala Pollution Control Board’s website, the levels of PM 2.5 and PM 10 particles in the air in Kochi were well above the prescribed standards.
The level of PM 2.5, tiny particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter that can penetrate deep into the lungs and even the bloodstream, was found at around 8.30 am today at 279.58 ug/m3, while the normal standard is 60.
The level of PM 10, particles with a diameter of less than 10 micrometres, was recorded at 324.65 against the normal of 100.
On Thursday, a fire broke out in the waste kept in the plant.
Officials said that due to the scorching heat, such incidents happen every year at this time.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)