KUWAIT CITY, Nov 17: Director of the Safety Department in Hawally Municipality Al-Humaidi Al-Mutairi affirmed that awareness of the municipality’s requirements and regulations for demolition and restoration of sites contributes to reducing their violations.

Al-Mutairi said this in a statement he issued on the sidelines of the third field tour organized by the Hawally Municipality's Safety Department yesterday as part of the comprehensive inspection campaign for the safety departments of all municipality branches in the country’s governorates.

He explained that licenses must be issued by Kuwait Municipality for the demolition and restoration of sites, starting with a license from the Engineering Audit and Follow-up Department, then a demolition safety license from the Safety Department, and then a license to prepare the demolition or restoration of the site by placing a fence around the site to prevent any stones or dust from flying outside the demolition site in order to avoid exposure to passersby or putting vehicles at risk.

The department monitored the demolition process in a property in Bayan to ensure care was taken during the demolition process to provide a source of water, either by a tanker or other means, to spray the demolition site and prevent the spread of dirt and dust during the demolition process.

After the completion of the demolition process, certain safety management requirements are implemented such as preventing the sorting of demolition products inside the site, especially separating the iron from the concrete, ensuring they are removed promptly, and cleaning the demolition site completely.

Then the owner of the demolition site or the company responsible for the demolition should visit the Safety Department to request a safety certificate for the cleanliness of the site. After that, a committee from the Safety Department will inspect the site, ensure its cleanliness, and grant the owner or company the certificate through which the work can be completed.

Al-Mutari stressed that the safety department's field tours continue daily according to a well-established geographical distribution, which makes it easier for officials to follow the progress of work and intervene if any problem occurs in a specific area.

He explained that in cases of violation of the demolition conditions, a citation is issued directly to the violator without a warning because the matter is sensitive and causes harm to the safety of those inside and outside the demolition site. In addition, the demolition companies know the requirements for demolition in advance and must adhere to them.

In case of a violation related to the presence of construction debris or other violations, a citation will be issued but it will be preceded by a warning and the issuance of a deadline for removal.

Last Thursday, the municipality launched its first campaign, which was implemented by safety department teams in the governorate’s municipality branches to ensure the implementation of safety requirements in construction and restoration operations, set up special containers for waste construction materials, and activate its supervisory role in maintaining the safety of infrastructure manholes, rain drainage, and sewage systems to confront weather conditions.

The first inspection tour in Jahra Governorate was headed by the Director of the Safety Department Hamoud Al-Mutairi during a field tour that resulted in the issuance of 293 warnings and a report against violators for non-compliance with safety regulations.

The inspection tours of the Safety Department of Ahmadi Municipality, headed by the Director of the department Khaled Al-Otaibi, and the general controller for the follow-up of safety works, also resulted in the issuance of warnings to 280 plots for not placing construction rubble containers and in taking legal measures, in addition to issuing a violation report against nine plots that did not modify the situation after warning about the violation of the safety conditions and regulations.

By Enas Awadh
Al-Seyassah / Arab Times Staff