Chair of Chemical Safety and Fire Defense

Safety and cost-effectiveness in fire service resource planning in North Rhine-Westphalia

Safety and Cost-Effectiveness in Fire Service Resource Planning in North Rhine-Westphalia

Minutes can feel like hours when you are urgently awaiting help during a fire or following an accident. This makes it all the more important that the emergency services are alerted immediately and arrive on the scene within a reasonable time to provide effective assistance. This requires sound planning by towns and local authorities. A research project at the University of Wuppertal, led by Prof. Dr Roland Goertz, now aims to develop practical guidelines for fire service resource planning in North Rhine-Westphalia (and beyond). The project was presented to the public today.

“Our aim is to enable comparisons between local authorities by establishing a fire service risk equivalence measure and to create uniform standards for the necessary risk analysis,” says Prof. Goertz.

Cities and local authorities are legally obliged to establish and maintain fire services. But where are fire service stations needed? What vehicles must be available, and how many firefighters are required?

“These questions – which are often of vital importance – must be answered on a ‘risk-based’ basis; in other words, in areas of lower risk, smaller fire service capacities are sufficient compared with, for example, city districts or neighbourhoods with dense residential development and industrial and commercial areas,” explains Prof. Goertz.

After all, towns and local authorities are obliged to manage their budgets in an economical, efficient and cost-effective manner and must also fulfil numerous other statutory duties.

Key points in brief:

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