The five emergency exits at Bara'em Al-Watan Girls' School in Jeddah, where a fire broke out Saturday, were not fully used to evacuate female teachers and students, according to Lt. Gen. Saad Al-Twaijri, Director General of the Civil Defense. He said that the use of emergency exits, fire drills and other safety training to deal with a fire or other disaster should become a priority of the government and the private sector. For example, Al-Twaijri said Civil Defense crew members had noticed that the girls panicked and were reluctant to climb into the rescue helicopter. He stressed that this type of behavior should be dealt with by educating students. He called on all authorities concerned to shoulder their responsibilities and provide proper training for members of the public. “We don't want it to be ink on paper. We want it to be the duty of every individual in society. Safety is the goal because lives are precious.” “We do bear part of the responsibility for training and we want to be given the chance to carry out this task. We have information on the danger of jostling and stampedes. We must reconsider the speed at which we undertake evacuations. If the concept had been used at the school, all the girls would have been evacuated without any injuries.” Al-Twaijri said students are not aware of the importance of safety measures and equipment. He cited the example of students tampering with fire extinguishers at Princess Noura University which could cause major problems if a fire broke out. Al-Twaijri said the evidence collected at the scene indicated that the fire started in the school's basement. He added that the evidence will be checked to determine the cause of the fire. This information, along with investigation reports and statements of eyewitnesses, will be used to decide whether the fire was an accident or the result of foul play. __
