28.01.2025 18:12
A brick wall was built at the fire escape exit of a building in Bakırköy. The building owner, Ali Bilen, defended himself by saying, "We had the fire escape built, and we also had the bricks laid at the apartment's fire exit. There is a fire exit door at the workplace, but there is no exit door for the other floors since they are residential. There is a requirement for fire exit doors in workplaces, but not in residential areas."
In Bakırköy, the fire escape exit of a three-story building, which has a business on the ground floor and apartments on the upper floors, has been bricked up. The building owner, Ali Bilen, stated, "We had the fire escape built, and we also had the bricks laid for the apartment's fire exit. There is a fire exit door in the business, but there is no exit door on the other floors since they are residential. Businesses are required to have a fire exit door, which is why there is an exit here, but there is no exit door on the upper floor because there is no requirement for residential areas."
THEY BLOCKED THE FIRE ESCAPE EXIT WITH BRICKS After the fire that occurred in Bolu Kartalkaya, attention turned to the measures taken in workplaces. The practices in the megacity, where businesses and apartments are located in the same buildings, began to be questioned. A different application in a building with a business on the first floor and apartments on the upper floors in Bakırköy drew attention. While the business has a fire escape exit door, it was observed that the exits on the floors with apartments were blocked with bricks.
"IF IT WERE A BUSINESS, WE WOULD BE OBLIGED TO MAKE AN EXIT DOOR" The building owner, Ali Bilen, said, "Our building has three floors. The floor we are on is a business, and there is a fire exit door. There is a tenant on the other floor. Our fire escape has also been built in accordance with regulations. We had the fire escape built, and we also had the bricks laid for the apartment's fire exit. There is a fire exit door in the business, but there is no exit door on the other floor since it is residential. Businesses are required to have a fire exit door, which is why there is an exit here, but there is no exit door on the upper floor because there is no requirement for residential areas. The fire escape and evacuation stairs are also ready and usable. The building belongs to us, and the fire escape is operational. It leads to the void. There is one person living here as a tenant, a person residing as a resident," he stated.
"THE FIRE ESCAPE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING SAFE EXIT" Occupational Health and Safety Specialist Dr. Nuri Bingöl stated, "This tragedy has been a lesson; everyone has gained awareness. I think we will be a bit more careful from now on. Now, when I go to a hotel, one of the first things I do is check the fire plan. I don't know if it's professional deformation, but I would check if there is a sprinkler system, whether it's wall-mounted or ceiling-mounted. But everyone needs to reach this awareness. Unfortunately, we didn't have such awareness. All inspections related to fire escapes and fire are carried out by the fire department; they are the only authorized organization. They are the only authorized organization; they inspect the fire escapes. The feature of fire escapes is that they are responsible for providing a safe exit during an escape or evacuation in case of fire. Therefore, their design must be technologically equipped, and if they are inside, they should be pressurized from above and below if necessary to prevent smoke from seeping in from the outside. It is necessary to ensure that there are at least two exit doors on each floor, supported by a set of emergency systems; for example, ensuring that those fans work when the electricity is cut off, and creating interiors with non-flammable materials like marble or concrete, reinforced with non-flammable materials so that nothing can ignite during the escape. Since there is nothing that can ignite, it should provide a safe evacuation opportunity as smoke does not seep in and heat does not enter," he said.
"OUTSIDE FIRE ESCAPES ARE MUCH RISKIER" Pointing out the practices related to buildings that house businesses and residences, Bingöl said, "In a three-story building, there is a fire escape on the ground floor company, but there is none above. The regulation on fire protection of buildings may allow this, but especially considering that evacuation will be more difficult in high-rise buildings, there are more significant rules in the fire protection regulation of buildings. For example, in buildings exceeding 21.5 meters, it is desired that the fire escape be inside because outside fire escapes are much riskier; because the flames and very high heat, even toxic smoke that occurs during a fire affect the outside fire escape, causing people to get trapped on the fire escape. Therefore, it is safer to have it inside; we saw this in the tragedy; we looked for a fire escape outside, but it is quite natural that there isn't one. The fire escapes inside did not have the characteristics of a fire escape," he said.
"WE DON'T GET OUR MONEY'S WORTH" Yadigar Peres, who stated that he would now question whether there is a fire escape wherever he goes, said, "There was one where I worked, but there was no fire escape in the hotel I went to. It was a luxury hotel, but there was none there either. Honestly, I am more anxious now. From now on, we will investigate all the hotels we will go to. Unfortunately, after these deaths, our lives are worth nothing; we are not getting our money's worth," he expressed. Hikmet Resuloğlu added, "I previously worked in a three-story restaurant. Of course, there was a fire escape where I worked. My boss was very disciplined, dedicated to his work, and a very valuable person who cared about human health and life. All precautions were taken where I worked. I worked in safety. That is how it should be. Unfortunately, looking at the current conditions in Turkey, whether it is a hotel or a business, there is no fire escape. No one asks, no one inspects, and no one holds anyone accountable. What is the result? It costs lives," he said.