eight councillor Maggy Zulu who was overcome with grief when the
parliamentarian visited a house in Chalala township where a woman died
after the structure caught fire in Lusaka recently
KABWATA Member of Parliament Given Lubinda has called on Lusaka city council (LCC) to put up fire hydrants in most townships if fire fighters are to be effective.
Mr Lubinda said this yesterday when he visited the funeral house of a 70 year old woman of Lusaka’s Chalala area who was burnt to death after she failed to come out of the house when it caught fire.
Christine Kambunga died after failing to escape the ravaging fire that swept through her house on Tuesday evening after a suspected electrical fault
He said most people have lost properties in circumstances that could have been avoided if fire fighter acted on time.
Mr lumbinda also called on the resident to be patient with fire fighters who were believed to have been stoned in protest of leaving the scene when they run out of water living the house on fire.
Ms Kambunga who had a stroke has since been buried in Pemba Southern Province.
The fire which started around 19:30 hours lasted over three hours reducing the house and the household property to ashes.
By the time firefighters arrived at the scene, the house had already been reduced ashes and were only in time to pick up the charred remains of the woman.
The first problem we have is a dysfunctional/ nonexistent system of approving house plans by qualified professionals in LCC. I could attribute this problem to poor electrical wiring of the house both at design and construction stage or negligence in the use of power in this house. Lubinda’s call for reticulation of fire hydrant water in townships that have no drinking water is somewhat misplaced at this stage. Of course it is necessary and would assist with fire-fighting, but stands to be vandalized and misused if done in communities that no portable domestic water, in fact it could be a mockery!
Good call.
Zambia has gone to the DOGS or DOGS have come to Zambia. The so-called local Authority in Lusaka should be taken to task for allocating plots to pipo in areas they know very well that there are no services like roads, sewer/drainage pipes installed, street lighting etc., etc.
Priority always is (like it was in the past) to put up this infrastructure first before allocating Land or plots to would be developers. Even after this, we had a department at Councils that was mandated to inspect structures being built to ascertain habitability and that builders are following laid down procedures acceptable and approved by the Council’s Engineering Department. Where are the building inspectors, what’s happening to us? Looks like any Jim/Jack can now build a dwelling home without procedure…
…Or building plans, drainage systems etc anywhere including Cairo road! Unless we go back to the past and do things correctly and like they should be, we will continue to lose life like that of that poor soul. My heart bleeds for mother Zambia….
And where is the water going to come from if people in these selfsame townships don’t have tap water for drinking.