MUMBAI, January 2: Mumbai's cinema halls are Uphaars waiting to happen. Wisened to the possibility of the Uphaar cinema hall fire, which occurred in New Delhi on June 13 and claimed 59 lives, taking place in Mumbai's theatres as well, the fire brigade has prepared educational slides to be shown in cinema halls in the city.These slides contain guidelines informing audiences on ways to handle such fires in case they occur. Informed Chief Fire Officer V V Rao, the slides, with background commentaries in Hindi, English and Marathi, are accompanied by detailed sketches of the staircases, passageways and emergency exits of the balcony and stalls.
The slides were first shown at Eros cinema hall on January 1, and will soon be introduced in all 126 theatres in Mumbai at the beginning of each show. ``The main aim is to make audiences aware of what they should do in case of accidents. If their initial reaction is proper, then losses in terms of property and lives could be minimised,'' Rao said. He added that a fire
brigade always conducts an annual inspection of fire fighting equipment and other safety standards at cinema halls when their licenses come up for renewal. ``The license is given by the police, but it also requires a fire brigade safety clearance,'' he said.
The guidelines will also inform the audience on how to help women, children and senior citizens and not crowd doorways. ``In case an accident occurs at crowded places, especially cinema halls, the audience is likely to react out of sheer panic. Even seemingly minor accidents can lead to major tragedies,'' Rao said. ``We have anticipated disasters in order to take adequate precautions, but no cinema hall anywhere in the world is foolproof against accidents, specially when you have halls that are 80 to 90 years old,'' he pointed out.
All the slides and commentaries have been prepared free of cost by noted filmmaker Vijay Anand and Tabassum. The English commentary has been delivered by Rao himself.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
