As we read on the website of the Bolesławiec County Headquarters of the State Fire Service:
In January this year, fire protection units in Bolesławiec County took part in extinguishing 31 fires and dealt with the consequences of 40 local emergencies, while crews were dispatched to false alarms four times. Compared with the previous year, there were 40 fewer interventions.
What about injured people?
Firefighters: – The statistics on the number of injured people also improved satisfactorily: 13 people were recorded during the incidents, over 50% fewer than in the corresponding period of 2020. In 12 cases, firefighters were the first to provide qualified first aid.
Are there reasons for optimism?
According to the officers – not necessarily. The Bolesławiec County Headquarters of the State Fire Service:
Despite the significant decrease in the number of fires, the 16 fires in residential buildings may be cause for concern, as improper use of heating appliances may have been their cause. Extensive public-awareness campaigns informing people of the obligation to carry out periodic technical inspections and clean chimney flues did not always have the intended effect, and these fires were often connected with soot igniting in chimneys. This most frequently concerned single-family residential buildings, where the owner must personally ensure that these obligations are fulfilled.
What about local emergencies?
Among the 40 interventions classified as so-called local emergencies, firefighters were dispatched nine times to traffic accidents, while another nine interventions were related to the implementation of new duties involving support for other services in countering the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, firefighters from Bolesławiec continuously supported the Bolesławiec Health Care Facility by keeping an inflatable tent, used by paramedics to decontaminate protective clothing, fully ready for use since April last year. In one case, they also assisted medical staff in transporting an elderly person with limited mobility to a vaccination point.
The firefighters add:
The winter weather also meant that fire protection units from Bolesławiec County carried out rescue operations on roads outside Bolesławiec County three times, including twice with the participation of the “Bolesławiec” Specialist Technical Rescue Group.