Prime Minister of Vietnam directs urgent solutions for fire prevention and fighting at fire and explosion hazardous facilities and crowded locations during Lunar New Year holiday in Vietnam

Prime Minister of Vietnam directs urgent solutions for fire prevention and fighting at fire and explosion hazardous facilities and crowded locations during Lunar New Year holiday in Vietnam​ (Image from internet)

The Prime Minister of Vietnam has just issued Directive 46/CT-TTg on December 23, 2024, addressing urgent measures in fire prevention, fighting, rescue, and relief at facilities with high risks of fire and explosion, and crowded locations during the Gregorian New Year and Lunar New Year 2025.

Prime Minister of Vietnam directs urgent solutions for fire prevention and fighting at fire and explosion hazardous facilities and crowded locations during Lunar New Year holiday in Vietnam

It is anticipated that in the near future, the situation of fires and explosions will continue to evolve in a complex and unpredictable manner, especially at the end of the year when dry weather prevails, and production, business activities, and stockpiling of goods for Lunar New Year holiday increase significantly. The accumulation of materials, goods, and the increased consumption of electricity and fuel lead to high risks of fire safety concerns.

To proactively prevent and curb fire and explosion incidents, minimizing damages caused by fires and explosions, the Prime Minister of Vietnam requests that the Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities:

- Localities that have not issued guidelines on enhanced fire safety conditions must urgently issue them before December 30, 2024, to ensure a strictly and effectively organized implementation.

- Require household owners and heads of multi-story buildings, multi-apartment houses, standalone houses combined with production and business activities (including rental accommodations), to commit and have a roadmap to implement enhanced fire prevention measures issued by provincial-level People's Committees and must fully implement these measures by March 30, 2025, as directed by the Prime Minister of Vietnam in Directive 19/CT-TTg. After this period, failure to comply will result in suspension of activities until completion.

- In urban areas lacking traffic infrastructure and firefighting water sources, plans for water supply, water storage, and allocation of firefighting equipment and rescue tools must be immediately developed.

- Assign specific tasks, allocate forces, equipment on standby, and ensure full equipment for civil defense forces and those participating in maintaining security and order at the grassroots level to be ready for rescue, firefighting in case of fire, explosion, accidents, incidents occurring at the location, establishment.

- Clearly assign responsibilities to provincial departments and functional authorities, heads of district and commune-level People's Committees in fire prevention and fighting, and rescue work in each locality; specify responsibilities of each level, sector, and individual in state management of fire prevention and fighting and rescue to have measures for review and strict handling if fires or explosions occur, causing significant damage in the locality. Chairpersons of the People's Committees at all levels must be accountable if fires or explosions occur causing significant loss of human life and property within the management area.

Additionally, Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, agencies under the Government of Vietnam, and Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities:

- Continue to organize the serious and effective implementation of directives from the Central Committee, the National Assembly, the Government of Vietnam, and the Prime Minister of Vietnam regarding fire prevention; considering this a regular, key task of agencies, units. Review the tasks assigned in the Central directives to focus on timely and quality implementation.

- Enhance propaganda on fire, explosion risks, regularly train escape skills, firefighting, disseminate knowledge, and legal regulations on fire safety conditions for each construction, facility, house, and house combined with production and business activities.

- Regularly and continuously conduct fire prevention inspections at establishments with high fire and explosion risks and crowded locations during the Gregorian New Year and Lunar New Year 2025; severely handle violations of fire prevention regulations. In case of serious violations of regulations, decisive temporary suspension, suspension of activities must be enforced.

Refer to more details at Directive 46/CT-TTg issued on December 23, 2024.

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