Seoul, Aug 23 (IANS) Controversy is arising over the safety of firefighters’ rescue mattresses, as two of the seven people killed in the Bucheon hotel fire two days ago here were found to have died after jumping onto a safety air cushion.
Video footage showed that the two — a man and a woman — died after jumping out the windows on the hotel’s eighth floor onto the air mattress installed by firefighters on the ground, Yonhap news agency reported.
The mattress was seen flipping after the woman landed on the edge of it. Then the man jumped four to five seconds later but ended up not on the mattress but on the bare ground.
Experts point out that air mattresses are particularly dangerous when used in high-rise building fires, saying they cannot be seen as a perfect evacuation device.
Yoon Myung-oh, an honorary professor of the University of Seoul, said air mattresses help escape from low-rise areas below the fourth floor and falling from higher heights is dangerous.
He also said there is a high chance of serious injury or death if people who are not well-trained in the use of air mattresses jump onto them.
Lee Young-joo, a professor at Kyungil University, also said that evacuation devices, such as air mattresses and descending lifelines, do not completely guarantee safe escape and they should be used only when normal evacuation is impossible.
According to fire authorities, air mattresses now in use in the country are certified to only allow jumping from heights of 15 metres or less in consideration of their absorption capacity and other factors.
Nevertheless, some experts say the case at the Bucheon hotel fire is very unusual, as air mattresses are not designed to flip easily.
Choi Young-sang, a professor at Daegu Health College, said it is very rare for air mattresses to overturn like the case in Bucheon.
He added that air mattresses are very heavy, so they rarely move, let alone flip over.
–IANS
int/khz
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
