Protect firefighters from being engulfed by conflagrations

Editor’s note: On the first anniversary of 31 people, mostly firefighters, losing their lives when attempting to put out a rapidly spreading forest fire in Xicang, capital of Liangshan Yi autonomous prefecture of Southwest China’s Sichuan province on March 30, another 19 people -- 18 firefighters and one local guide -- were killed by wildfires on the exact same day in the same place. The bitter coincidence inspires reflection on how to develop a more scientific approach to extinguish fires while minimizing casualties. Two experts share their views with China Daily’s Yao Yuxin. Excerpts follow:

More funds and resources should be tapped for firefighting

Reportedly, the 18 firefighters who died while trying to extinguish forest fires were mostly farmers. They would do farm work when there was no fire emergency. Three months after being founded, the fire brigade was sent to the front line against the conflagration.

While firefighting, human life should always come first, followed by property and forest resources. In the face of complex terrain, firefighters have to wait outside in safe areas until more information is known about the fire conditions.

To better protect the safety of firefighters, it’s important to intensify training before sending them out to the battlefront. Keeping a distance from blazes should be strongly advocated through measures such as setting up isolation belts to reduce direct contact between people and fire. Also, protective gear should be easily available to rescuers in case of an emergency.

Surveys show that Liangshan Yi autonomous prefecture has a high frequency of forest fires. Shortfalls in rain with high temperatures give the prefecture a long period with the risk of fire, from winter to spring, making vegetation drier and more likely to burn.

In the wake of recurrent bush fires, the prefecture has approved a forest fire prevention plan that by 2025 will have a total investment of 1.1785 billion yuan — 70 percent from central financing — poured into the construction of multiple networks including surveillance cameras, watchtowers, roads, barriers and communication to enable the quick detection and handling of bush fires.

It is said that by the end of 2025, the surveillance coverage will reach 95 percent of the whole forest field and the rate of putting out fires within 24 hours will rise to 90 percent. The damage rate will be controlled within 0.1 percent.

There are some shortcomings to make up for in the prevention and extinguishing of wildfires at home.

For instance, in the institutional reform of the State Council in 2018, anti-forest fire forces were relocated into the Ministry of Emergency Management from the former National Forestry Administration (the National Forestry and Grassland Administration), leaving some overlap of duties that needed to be clarified locally.

Apart from that, the current number of professional firefighters is still insufficient. There is also a gap in some rescue equipment such as water tanker aircraft suitable on the plateau which are greatly helpful for patrolling, observing the fire in the air, and instantly transporting firefighters to the fire line.

Bai Ye, director at the department of forest fire prevention and extinguishing, China Fire and Rescue Institute.

In China, the vast majority of forest fires are caused by human errors. As the woods normally lie in remote areas, it’s hard to instantly know when and where the fire exactly occurs, and once you miss the first opportunity to curb blazes, which normally happen in hot and dry conditions, it could very likely develop into a large-scale disaster.

Actually, it’s a worldwide problem. Due to the ever-changing fire conditions and the complex terrain, there are casualties of firefighters over the years during periods of high risk of fires. The worst bush fires around the world over the last decade are hard to bring under control by human efforts, even for countries with strong firefighting forces, causing incalculable loss in resources, environment and property.

Thus, the work against wildfires should always put prevention as the priority. By enhancing fire control and raising local people’s awareness against blazes, many potential fires could be largely extinguished at the source.

China actually has done an impressive job in fighting forest fires, dropping the annual number of wildfires from over 10,000 just 30 years ago to around 3,000 in recent years. From 2008 to 2018, the annual number of forest fires per thousand hectares and the areas burned in every single fire in China were far lower than those of the United States.

The achievements could in part be attributed to clear responsible bodies that may also be held liable if a fire occurs, apart from all levels of authorities, rangers, tourists and residents living in or around the woods.

Given climate change and the growing accumulation of flammable soil due to eco-friendly policies, China, vast in territory and forests, is facing a growing risk of bush fires.

Building a local team of professional firefighters matters. To improve effectiveness, regulations against forest fires should be varied in different places according to the local vegetation and climate. Besides, in places with high levels of wildfires, such regulations are both environmentally and economically friendly to introduce, such as a firebreak forest belt.

Wang Haihui, a professor at the State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China.

The views don’t necessarily represent those of China Daily.