Robot to fight fires in Manila

MANILA, Philippines — Fire officials in Manila may no longer need to risk their lives in responding to fire incidents, with the newly procured remote-controlled firefighting machine worth P40 million. 

Manila disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) officer Arnel Angeles yesterday said the robotic fire fighter, complete with accessories like a thermal camera and a remote control, contains 360 nozzles, which means it has the capacity of 360 firefighters.

“The machine also has a thermal camera so that it can detect the main source of the fire, so that our fire personnel can be spared from being injured with shards of glass or with burns,” Angeles said.

The LUF 60 Mobile Unmanned Fire Fighting Machine, procured from Singapore-based Co-operative of Singapore Civil Defence Force Employees Ltd., is a wireless, remote controlled firefighting support machine that not only pump water, but also clears gases and smoke from a burning building.

It has a water cannon that is composed of 360 nozzles and can pump water to a distance of 60 meters.

The robotic firefighter has been used in fire incidents in Germany and Singapore, according to the company’s slide presentation to city hall.

Different connections can be attached to the fan to adjust the water stream from the machine to jet water up to 60 to 80 meters.

The robot can also climb stairwells and can ramp to 30 degrees.

The P40-million budget to procure the lone robot was sourced from the city’s disaster risk reduction and management funds, Angeles said, adding that he hopes the city hall can procure more of these robots.

Before the robot can be deployed, the city hall’s DRRM officials will have to undergo trainings on how to operate the machine, he added.