"Our rescue ladders reach up to 72 meters": how are fires in skyscrapers extinguished?

"Our rescue ladders reach up to 72 meters": how are fires extinguished in skyscrapers?

According to Khurshid Sotiyev Tulqinboyevich, Deputy Minister of Emergency Situations, while the construction of buildings with 50 or more floors continues in Tashkent, special attention is being paid to ensuring fire safety in such structures.

"To deploy equipment designed for heights beyond that, for example 100 meters, a very large area is required. Therefore, during the construction of high-rise buildings, normative documents specifically related to fire safety from leading foreign countries are being studied, and our proposals are being submitted at the project stage," said Khurshid Sotiyev.

According to him, high-rise buildings must feature smoke-proof staircases and fire-resistant elevators. In addition, automatic fire extinguishing systems such as sprinklers and drenchers are also of great importance. In a sprinkler system, water is sprayed automatically when the temperature reaches a specified level, whereas a drencher system simultaneously activates multiple water sprayers in the affected area.

"It takes a certain amount of time for our rescuers to reach that floor. In a fire, every minute counts. Internal fire hydrants, primary fire extinguishing equipment—that is, fire extinguishers—all of these are systems that function until the units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations arrive," the Deputy Minister said.

Sotiyev also emphasized that compliance with safety requirements in such buildings is equally important for residents and building management organizations. According to him, unauthorized modification of building designs or tampering with installed engineering systems is strictly prohibited. Restrictions on the use of gas systems in high-rise buildings are also among the measures to ensure fire safety.

Aziz Abduazizov, Chief Specialist of the Urban Planning Prevention Department, stated that foreign experience in ensuring fire safety in high-rise buildings is being studied, and measures are being taken to apply it in our country. In particular, the experiences of the United Arab Emirates, China, and South Korea in extinguishing fires in high-rise buildings and protecting the population are being examined.

"Today, in high-rise buildings such as Nest One and Pyramid Tower, fire and rescue vehicles—namely fire aerial ladders—are capable of rescuing citizens up to a maximum of 72 meters. The issue of establishing a safe environment in a specific part of the building, that is, designating one floor entirely as a safe zone and evacuating citizens to that area in the event of emergency situations, is being considered, and this practice is currently being applied in reality," said Aziz Abduazizov.

According to Abduazizov, attention is also being focused on the widespread implementation of automatic fire extinguishing systems in high-rise buildings and monitoring their status in real time through digital tools. In this process, signals coming from automatic devices installed at various points of the building are transmitted simultaneously to fire and rescue situational centers and the building's dispatch centers.

"This, first of all, serves to cover the building completely and monitor what situation is occurring at which point of it. Secondly, it allows for the prompt detection of a fire or emergency situation that has occurred at any point in the building and ensures the safety of citizens in that area," the specialist said.