Reducing Fire Threats to Homes: Piloting Community-based Fire Risk Assessment in Ban Hatsady Village

In the late afternoon of August 1, 2000, fire raged across Ban Hatsady village of
Vientiane, Lao PDR. About 26 single and multi-family structures, including a small
market, were totally destroyed or irreparably damaged. Although fire suppression
actions attempted to save homes, the high ignitability of most of the structures
caused numerous simultaneous house fires that quickly overwhelmed the
suppression forces. The damage was relatively high. This distressful experience
left deep scars in the minds of the villagers as they helplessly witnessed their
properties being burned down slowly to the ground. The incident is only one among
the recurring fire events in Vientiane, Lao PDR.