Saudi Gazette report MADINAH — Several people in Madinah have described gas cylinder shops in the midst of neighborhoods as a ticking bomb waiting to explode. Most of these gas cylinder shops are located near residential and school areas. People are calling on related authorities and Civil Defense to relocate these shops outside the city of Madinah and away from residential areas. Muhammad Al-Sehli, a Madinah resident, said authorities should consider positioning these shops in a secure place rather than moving them outside the city. He said: “The current location of some of these shops is unsafe and poses danger to residents. No major accident has yet happened here, but we should not wait for the catastrophe. Many of these shops are located in the middle of neighborhoods and next to schools or near to it. This is very dangerous for our children, especially the younger ones who could inhale the gas if God forbids something bad happens.” Fawzi Al-Shusieni, another Madinah resident, disagrees with Al-Sehli. He believes that the location inside the city makes it easier for people to have their gas cylinders refilled instead of having to travel long distances outside the city. He said: “These shops were inside neighborhoods for a very long time. No accidents have taken place because these shops have taken security precautions. Moving these shops outside the city will only do more damage to people than good. We can easily avoid any disaster from happening if we force people to exercise extreme caution.” Sultan Al-Osaimi said the position of gas cylinder shops inside the neighborhoods is a two-way thing. It could “explode and cause damage to people and properties near these shops and we would pay a heavy price. But at the same time, these shops are providing a great service to the community because of their easy access.” Naif Al-Marwani, another resident, said: “Many gas cylinder shops lack safety measures. Some of these shops have shoddy fire extinguishers because they have not been maintained for a very long time. “Many of the workers inside gas cylinder shops are not trained to deal with emergency situations. They can be seen inside the shops dropping gas cylinders on the floor and do not care about the safety of the place. The Civil Defense is responsible for safety of these shops and they should implement strict safety measures.” The official spokesman for Madinah Civil Defense, Col. Khaled Al-Juhani, said the main task of the Civil Defense is to ensure that all gas cylinder locations are safe. He said one of the main safety measures is fire extinguishers and secured electricity lines. He said that between 2003 and 2012, there were 3,334 accidents in gas cylinder shops that led to the death of 85 people and injuries to over 300 others.
