| dc.description.abstract | The establishment of System and Concept of
Taiwanese Fire fighting
After the WWII - A discussion mainly in fire incidents
(1945-1985)
Abstract
Taiwan′s fire service, from World War II to the passing of the Fire and Rescue Law in 1985, was part of the police organization. The scope of work of the firefighters primarily involved fire fighting but it also included other disasters. The fire organization, under the police system, could not easily react to the adjustment or changes of any fire fighting procedures. Additionally, these changes were subject to the limitations of their own internal organization. So, the improvement of the procedures of the fire fighting organization was unable to keep up with changes being made in developed countries.
The reporting of the Taiwanese Fire organization was changed, in part from the appeals of insightful firefighters and major fire incidents which caused heavy public casualties. These events forced the chief government officials to better understand the current situation. Therefore, organizational changes were made in order to adapt to the increasingly complex environment.
The county municipal fire brigade rank was upgraded to the first level. The central government as well as the state, local county and city governments made the fire department a provincial administrative organization and management as a dedicated unit. This caused the focus of fire prevention and fire rescues to have equal importance. A lot of changes resulting in the transformation of the fire services.
However, when the fire units were part of the police system, obtaining
expenditure, equipment and additional manpower were impacted by the police internal systems and the lack of government financial resources.
To increase the firefighting manpower, the expenditure as well as the equipment, the fire units could only gradually obtain more funds year after year to improve the fire fighting force.
Training new talents to firefighters began with the training program of the postwar Police Training Institute of the Chief Executive Office. After 1954, new firefighters were hired and then trained by the Police due to the lack of manpower. This replenished the number of firefighters. The Central Police Officer College opened the Fire and Rescue Department in 1970, training new talents to firefighters at the university level. In 1980, the establishment of
the Institute of Police ＂Fire and Rescue Section＂, provided the firefighter with training of additional new talents.
With economic development, the number of fires is gradually increasing. Therefore, the government, has used entry level advocacy meetings, fire instructions, newspapers, magazines, television, textbooks and other curriculum, to educate the society on fire prevention and to establish the concepts of fire safety for the public,including educating children in school, in order to reduce the incidence of fire.
Returning to the main issue of facing these fire and rescue problems, the complete passage of the Fire Services Law can regulate the fire and rescue organization, manpower, expenditures and equipment. The government has to implement this law in order to enhance the efficiency of the work of the fire and rescue. Henceforth, in the legislative of Fire and Rescue Law complete a stage of the reform in the history of fire and rescue in Taiwan .
Keywords: fire, fire system, fire and rescue law, volunteer
firefighter team. | en_US |