Guyana’s notoriously poor building codes

Feb 22, 2018 Letters

Dear Editor,

In several letters to this newspaper, I indicated that Guyana has poor building codes and virtually no enforcement procedures. The recent fire at Coldingen, at Supra International Furniture manufacturing complex, was indeed sad, but moreso, unprepared for. Gafoor’s Bond at Houston, followed by another fire at Fazia’s Collection building on Avenue of the Republic a year ago is ample testimony of this.
It must be remembered that a mere eight months ago, a boarding house near the University of Guyana succumbed to a massive fire. Obviously, the authorities are not cognizant of their mediocre standard of housing safety and building codes.
Commercial buildings need sprinkler systems: a series of road-side connections for fire hoses which will distribute water inside a building in the event of a fire. Automated oxygen-retardant systems need to be installed inside, where an increase in temperature (say at 110°F) will trigger off the chemical spray. This (halogen) chemical will suck out the oxygen and the fire will be greatly contained. Smoke alarms are cheap and should be installed along corridors, which are the principal pathways for smoke. The owner, Mr. Keith Moonasar, indicated black smoke. This is indicative of hydrocarbon combustion, almost always, invariably, oil or petroleum products.
Bonds need to be sectionalised, much like the compartments in ships such as oil tankers. Concrete separating walls with steel (fire-proof) connecting doors must be the code for storage warehouses. This, coupled with periodic safety inspections, must be the way forward. Storage of cooking gas containers must never be inside a closed building. Propane is highly flammable (after all people cook with it) and the tanks need to be stored outdoors: any leakage/explosion will dissipate harmlessly into the atmosphere; same for motor oil and similar substances.
The parking of forklift trucks after usage can cause fires as the heat from the engine, whether propane or battery-operated, can ignite paper, plastics, debris etc. Loose materials like sawdust, cardboard boxes and the waterproof wrapping plastic must be cleaned and placed in metal containers outside storage facilities. Moreover, many materials cannot be stored together. Cement (an alkaline limestone compound) cannot be in the same place with concrete (acid-based) cleaners. Any combination, say from spillage, (as any chemistry schoolboy knows) produces a massive amount of enthalpy.
Perhaps the worst aspect of construction in Guyana is the electrical system, material and installation codes. This is in serious need of overhauling. Systems such as 100 Amperes distribution with flyback breakers are the standard for commercial buildings such as warehouses, offices, shopping centres, night clubs and so on. This is virtually non-existent. GFCI outlets (with built-in overload kick-out) rarely exist, while electric wiring is predominantly vinyl coated (easily combustible) copper wire. Additionally, old wiring, coupled with corroded fuses, which do not trip or ‘blow’, poses severe risk of fire.
Finally, the government (and insurance companies) must shift gears into ebullience and rid itself of the existing Thewlis approach towards safety and through a Bureau of Standards, must monitor the very poor quality of electrical fittings and accessories (mostly from China) that flood the Guyanese market. While they are definitely cheaper than their other counterparts, the consequences are often costly and fatal.
Guyana cries out for an Occupational Safety & Health Act (OSHA).
Leyland Chitlall Roopnaraine
Real Estate Builder (New York)

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