With the recent fatal fires in public buildings in Bangkok, along with other non fatal fires, anyone with eyes could see them coming. It does not take a licenced electrician to identify electrical wiring practices in Thailand as being an accident waiting to happen.
When you look at a junction point where many electrical wires come together, and it resembles a plate of spaghetti, one can’t help but wonder just how long before it catches fire. In this case it is a matter of when and not if. With all those wires laying in a pile, there is a lot of heat being generated. Anyone that has picked up a hot extension cord knows exactly what that is all about.
Recent electrical fires have been in The Government house, as well as many of the tourist entertainment venues. There seemingly is no place that is immune with the exception of places that insisted on western standards.
Living in Asia is a bit more risky than living in a developed western country, but essentially that is part of the adventure. However when shoddy workmanship is introduced, what was once chance now becomes more certain. When something goes wrong and the word ‘flee’ is part of the news, it does leave you with a bit of an uneasy feeling. That suggests that the person doing the job knows it is substandard, and is hoping he or she does not get caught.
The issue is this wiring practice is virtually everyplace you look. If Thailand was ever to do a job creating stimulus package similar to what the USA is planning, starting with the rewiring of Bangkok, there would be work for thousands of people for the better part of a decade. Expand that to other cities and you have plenty of work.
Connecting the Dots is not looking to put down Thailand, but only to make some suggestions that are a win, win situation. That being jobs, better safety and piece of mind, and being a bit more attractive to people who want to visit Thailand. All it takes is one or two high profile electrical fires and the next tourist disaster will have been launched. Thailand needs to do a lot more to edge out other countries with similar attractions. Safety standards that are closer to western standards will eventually pay off in the long run.
