Kuwait: 39 shops sealedfor violating fire safety regulations

KUWAIT: The General Fire Service Directorate (GFSD) has taken action against 39 shops and warehouses across multiple governorates for violation and non-compliance with fire safety regulations.

The establishments were shut down by the General Fire Service Directorate (GFSD) due to their failure to secure the necessary fire licenses and their non-compliance with established safety and fire regulations.

The businesses did not take the required corrective measures despite receiving prior warnings to address these violations. The authorities say the closures are part of a broader initiative by the General Fire Service Directorate (GFSD) to ensure public safety and adherence to fire safety standards.

The directorate said the importance of obtaining proper fire licenses and maintaining compliance with safety protocols to prevent potential hazards is vital, therefore, the business must attain them. This move aims to mitigate risks associated with fire incidents and protect both property and lives.

On June 12, 2024, more than 35 people were killed and dozens injured after a fire broke out at dawn in a building housing nearly 200 foreign workers in Kuwait.

Forty-three people were injured, the health ministry said, in the blaze in the Mangaf area south of Kuwait City which is heavily populated with migrant labourers.

“Unfortunately, we received a report of a fire at… exactly 6:00 am (0300 GMT) in the Mangaf area,” Major General Eid Al-Owaihan, head of the Interior Ministry’s General Department of Criminal Evidence, said at the site.

“As for the deaths in the building behind me, the number has exceeded 35 so far.”

Images from the scene showed soot blackening the exterior of the six-storey building which housed 196 workers, according to information given to the minister by their employer.

Oil-rich Kuwait has large numbers of foreign workers, many of whom are from South and Southeast Asia, and they mostly work in construction or service industries.