DUBAI // Strict procedures are followed by security guards when fire alarms go off in a building – but residents who are used to false alarms often pay little heed.

Alarms are often set off inadvertently by people cooking or smoking, which can lead to a lack of faith in the system.

“If the alarm rings more than three minutes then it should be taken seriously,” said a receptionist at the Icon 1 building in Jumeirah Lakes Towers.

“This is when the Civil Defence is informed. But a lot of times people cook and it sets the alarm off so it has to be shut down from our side in that case.”

Mohammed A, a resident in Dubai Marina’s Bay Central Tower, said the alarm in his building used to go off at least twice a week for no reason.

“The worst is when it would happen at about 3am or 4am. I took my passport and went down with everyone else only to find security guards telling us they were false alarms, so no one takes it seriously anymore.”

A security guard at the tower, which was developed by the Select Group, the same company that created The Torch that caught fire on Saturday, said every alarm should be treated seriously.

“We can immediately see on our monitor which unit set off the alarm,” he said. “If it is more than one unit, that would usually mean a fire has spread. But many times people cook so we switch off the alarm and we go up to their apartment to check if everything’s OK. Usually, if residents hear a recorded voice warning asking them to evacuate then it’s a fire.”

Mohammed said sometimes alarms went off only on specific floors.

“I called the Civil Defence once because the alarm kept ringing for two hours on and off from 6am and I couldn’t sleep,” he said. “They arrived in 20 minutes and told the security guards they would be fined if they didn’t sort the system out. We’re getting scared as residents because this is really a safety issue.”

Transguard Security Services, the security company at Bay Central, has 4,000 personnel across the country. Each building it is contracted to work for has its own site-specific major incident plan that includes evacuation procedures.

“Regular drills are scheduled through the building’s property management or facilities management team and carried out in consultation with the Civil Defence,” said company director Simon Currie.

“In all cases, residents are informed of any scheduled incident activities through notices in public areas and in the building lifts.”

He said all of the company’s guards were trained in basic first aid and firefighting skills.

“We also identify key individuals who will receive enhanced training to become certified in these disciplines. Every team member will have been briefed thoroughly on the building’s emergency procedures and will know exactly how to react, whether it is a drill or a real incident.”

Mr Currie said in the case of a fire alarm, residents should immediately vacate the building.

He said false alarms had more to do with system faults rather than a security team neglecting their duties.

A property management company, Mr Currie said, “should be applying greater pressure on the contractors that have been appointed to manage and maintain the building’s fire alarm and other systems to ensure they are functioning properly at all times, because regular false alarms can lead to complacency”.

“The on-site security teams are responsible for monitoring the building management systems and for reporting any error messages or faults. These are passed on to the team which then contacts the main fire detection systems contractor for immediate response to the faults.”

After an alarm ends, security staff visit the affected area.

“If there is no fire, the main panel is reset. If it is a fire that requires action the alarm is immediately reactivated and the normal building evacuation procedure is carried out.”

cmalek@thenational.ae