Small electric welding tasks can pose significant risks

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At 13:00 on November 14, a fire broke out in a residential building at No. 836, Datong East Road, Hutang, Wujin District, with people trapped inside. Upon receiving the call, the Changzhou Fire Brigade immediately dispatched 8 vehicles and 38 officers from Special Operations Squad 3 and Guanghua Road Squad to the scene. Smoke could be seen rising heavily just 100 meters from the scene. Upon arrival, the firefighters found that the fire was located on the fourth floor of a building. The ground floor of the building is used as a shop, while the second and third floors are hotels. On the west side of the fourth floor there is a hotel, and on the east side there are rental units; at this point, the fire was spreading from east to west. The firefighters immediately began firefighting and search-and-rescue operations; the firefighting team set up water guns outside the building and used lift trucks with water cannons to extinguish the fire. The rescue team searched for the trapped people floor by floor, and after more than an hour of intense efforts, the fire was completely extinguished. According to the hotel owner, the fire was caused by a welder working at a rented room on the fourth floor. After an inspection of the scene by firefighters, it was preliminarily determined that the incident was caused by improper procedures during welding work. The welders working on site did not possess the necessary qualifications, and flammable materials were not removed from the site before construction, which led to the fire. Subsequently, the police station placed three individuals involved in the fire under administrative detention. Coincidentally, two fires caused by illegal welding also occurred in October this year. Case review: Case 1 – At around 3 p.m. on October 11, a fire broke out in the parking lot on the third floor of Lotte Mart in Hutang, Wujin District. Firefighters arrived at the scene to extinguish the fire. Afterward, when firefighters investigated the cause of the fire, they found that welder Liu had failed to remove any flammable materials from the area while using a liquefied petroleum gas cylinder to carry out welding work on the roof’s waterproofing in the northwest corner of Tesco’s rooftop parking lot. During the welding process, sparks fell on combustible materials, which led to the disaster. Given that Liu violated safety procedures during welding, the public security authorities imposed administrative detention on him. Case 2: At around 11 a.m. on October 19, the Xueyan Squad in Wujin District received a call reporting a fire at Binyan Home Appliances, located at No. 16 Xuehu Road, Xueyan Town, Wujin District. Upon receiving the call, firefighters immediately rushed to the scene to carry out rescue efforts. The fire spread rapidly at the scene; thick smoke filled the shopping mall, and a large number of household appliances stored in the storage area on the second floor were also set alight by the flames. During the fire fighting, the firefighters learned that another employee was trapped. They ventured inside the mall and found the female employee near the elevator on the first floor, rescuing her. Afterward, staff from the Wujin Fire Brigade went to the scene of the incident to conduct a preliminary investigation into the cause of the fire. During the investigation, it was found that the 3 workers who were performing welding work on the billboards at the time did not possess the necessary qualifications for such work; firstly, the operators were working without proper licenses, and secondly, no safety measures were in place during the operation. Subsequently, the police station placed the 3 operators and the head of that advertising company under administrative detention. Reasons for fires caused by welding: 1. The welder did not possess the necessary certification as a special operations worker, violated operating procedures severely, and fled the scene after causing a fire ； 2. The renovation project violates regulations through multiple layers of subcontracting, resulting in the failure to implement safety responsibilities ； 3. The management at the construction site is chaotic, safety measures are not implemented, and there are clear instances of rushing to meet deadlines, pressing for progress, and carrying out construction in a hasty manner ； 4. The use of large amounts of flammable materials such as nylon mesh and polyurethane foam at the accident site in violation of regulations led to the rapid spread of the fire ； 5. The relevant departments failed to provide adequate safety supervision, which led to multiple subcontracting arrangements, concurrent operations by various parties, and the employment of unlicensed welders; moreover, safety management for projects resuming operations after a shutdown was inadequate. Welding operations are extremely dangerous; in the event of a fire, the consequences can be disastrous. The Fire Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China stipulates that personnel engaged in fire-risky tasks such as welding and gas welding, as well as operators of automatic fire protection systems, must hold valid certificates to work and must strictly adhere to fire safety procedures. The \"Safety Operating Procedures for Welders\" stipulate clearly that work clothes must be worn, along with a work hat, gloves, and protective shoes, before starting work ； Use a mask while working ； Welding is prohibited in areas near locations where flammable and explosive materials are stored ； When welding near flammable materials, one must keep a distance of 5 meters ； When welding outdoors, wind shields must be installed to prevent sparks from causing fires ； When welding at heights, it is necessary to wear a safety belt, and a shield must be placed below the area where welding takes place to prevent sparks from falling and causing fires or injuries to others. Construction companies must strictly abide by **relevant laws and regulations, pay attention to fire safety education and publicity, strengthen fire safety management at the construction sites, and prevent the occurrence of serious fire hazards from the source.