Fire extinguishing systems on Metro buses not approved

THE FIRE extinguishing system on Panama’s Metro Buses has not been approved by the Fire Department of Panama (CBP), after two years and five months of operation.

It is an issue of special concern in Panama as 18 people were incinerated and others severely burned on a Panama bus in 2006, and recent smoke related incidents on Metro buses have caused panic.

The fire chief CBP research, Hiran Ponce, confirmed to La Prensa that the institution has not reviewed or approved safety equipment for buses because the Transit Authority (ATTT) has not requested inspection.
Chapter XIX of the rules of the Security Bureau of Fire Prevention CBP import details that extinguishers, installation and operation must have the approval of this institution.
The regulation, Article 4-19 refers to the license for servicing fire extinguishers, while Article 5-19 deals with obtaining the operating license, but none have been applied in the safety systems of the Metro Buses.
The secretary general of the ATTT, Nicolas Brea said that CBP has no bearing on this issue, since it is not a building.
The consortium manager Mass Transit Panama, SA (Mi Bus), consortium manager, Miguel Cardona, said that the contract required the state operating conditions for buses be observed.
Cardona added that Volvo is the company that supplied the buses, which provides maintenance to the firefighting equipment, although it has not been validated by CBP.
Nils Petterson, legal representative of the company STS Panama, SA, dealers in fire fighting equipment, , says that you need a review of the fire department to operate.
According to Petterson, without this requirement would be importing illegally security systems.

While 1,200 buses of the company have an internal fire suppression in the engine, operators and users are unaware of its existence.
The manager of Mi Bus said a publicity campaign by the ATTT to inform passengers of this and other issues is pending.
On two occasions in May, users noticed smoke emanating from inside a bus, panicked and ended up breaking windows for fear of being burned to death as happened on October 23, 2006, when the bus 8B-06 caught fire and killed 18 people burned.
The representative of the Association of Public Transport Movement October 23, David Ramirez, lamented that users and operators are unaware of the existence of a fire safety mechanism in the engine. He added that Metro Bus makers have said the fighting system are active, but have not submitted documentation to certify it.
The director of the Public Safety Foundation, Ezequiel Vargas said that ignoring CBP safety standards CBP is a privilege for Mi Bus and stressed that "the problem of all is that in Panama there are laws, but no one to enforce them. "
Victor Martinez, a lawyer for the families of the victims of the crash of October 23, 2006, said ATTT has not fulfilled its overseeing role. Meanwhile, "the company (My Bus) is putting the lives of users, at risk" he said.