The Polish Association of Fire Engineers and Technicians (SITP) is a dynamic organization, which defines, together with the SFS, the fire safety standards in Poland. For its activity and numerous social initiatives raising the level of fire safety the SITP was honoured by the Chief Commandant of the SFS with the Józef Tuliszkowski Medal of Honour. (own info)
New Knights of St. Florian
In October this year, as every year, words of an oath taken by young students of the fire service were to be clearly heard in the Main School of Fire Service in Warsaw - a higher school educating fire service officers and experts in the field of fire safety and civil safety. (own info)
Different But Still the Same
We would like to develop norms for different fire protection systems, to deal with the issues of rescue tactics and firefighting technology on a larger scale as well as to develop international cooperation, says Bronisław Skaźnik, the head of the Polish Association of Fire Engineers and Technicians. (own info)
Tragedy In Ditch
The town of Tuchola, Monday, 18 August. It is shortly before 5 pm, when suddenly the sound of sirens of the rescue vehicles goes off. Just a moment later the dispatcher of the District Alarm and Dispatch Center of the State Fire Service in Tuchola informs the commander of the local fire and rescue unit, who is already on duty, that some people had been buried in the collapsed ditch in Gostycyn (the Tuchola district). By Krzysztof Łangowski.
A rail disaster involving 24 tankers carrying liquid sulphur occurred in Kobylnica, near the city of Poznań in June 2008. An action was taken to protect the humans and environment as well as to liquidate the consequences of the accident. By Jerzy Ranecki.
Support From the Sky
An agreement on the cooperation in the field of medical rescue concluded by the State Fire Service and the Polish Medical Air Rescue legitimizes previous initiatives in this field and at the same time sets the direction for their development and accelerates them. By Lech Lewandowski
Exercises "Klasztor - Bysławek 2008"
Volunteers from four neighbouring districts: Tuchola, Świecie, Chełmno and Bydgoszcz participated in extensive exercises in Bysław. This was the first meeting in action of a new team of the 3rd Fire Company "Tuchola" of the Support Brigade of the Kujawy-Pomerania Province. The place of the exercises was quite specific - a monastery. By Krzysztof Łangowski.
People Trembled With Fear
When the sirens of the fire vehicles went off on 12 September 2008, people came out of their houses and terrified looked at the forest. Everyone here, in the Rudziniec Forest District, remembers the fire, which destroyed huge forest area, without any respect to the heroic struggle of firefighters, foresters, soldiers and other people fighting the flames. And although 16 years have passed since this tragic event, the living memories have still prompted fear and respect for the one of the greatest elements. By Agnieszka Rękas
Exercises Bóbr - Kwisa 2008
The biggest exercises in the Lower Silesia province with the code name "Bóbr - Kwisa 2008" concerned the actions of the crisis and anti-terror services and took place in the Lwówek Śląski district on 10 and 11 September 2008. By Marcin Lampart
When Chaos is the Weapon
International terrorism is one of the main problems the Western democracies and countries organized in such a way have to deal with. Acts of terrorism directed at citizens and critical infrastructure of the countries were the subject of an international conference organized in the Central School of the State Fire Service in Częstochowa. By Jerzy Linder.
Paraglider Under Voltage
Air sports are increasingly popular at leisure in Poland. Powered paragliding is one of them. Sky-high adventures of some followers of Icarus may finish in an unexpected way. By Paweł Frątczak and Adam Robaczewski.
Prevention for Tacticians Part 2
How to Reach a Fire?
In thousands of reports from the incidents it is stated that the basic difficulty during the extinguishing action was lack of access for the fire service. There are even three possible explanations of this fact. The first one is an actual lack of access. In the second situation there is an access road, but it is completely blocked up with the cars of the inhabitants, so it is impossible to reach freely the building. In the third possible situation there is an appropriate access road leading to the building, but it does not comply with the current requirements of the action. By Paweł Rochala.
Closer Look on Freight Villages
They pop up like mushrooms near the city of Łódź. It is a result of attractive location of the province - from a place located in the center of Poland, near motorways, it is possible to reach every part of Poland and neighbouring countries in a relatively short time. The high number of such buildings in the region inspired the Łódź department of the Polish Association of Fire Engineers and Technicians and the Regional HQ of the SFS to organize a conference devoted to the large logistic buildings. (own info)
Dangerous Smoke
Although smoking is slowly going out of fashion, still one sixth of the world population smokes 5.5 trillion cigarettes a year. This means there is exactly the same number of cigarette butts, which pose a possible threat of fire. By Tomasz Sawicki.
Bullying - Modern Civilisation Effect?
Job satisfaction, just like the possibility of development, financial benefits and satisfaction from performed tasks, is influenced by the atmosphere and relations among the employees. By Anna Kacperczyk
Teachers Or Teaching Officers?
Teaching is a challenge, no matter who the students are: children, teenagers or the adults. The difficulty level is definitely higher in vocational training. This difficult and at the same time very responsible task is undertaken every day by the teachers from the State Fire Service, teaching fire service professions of a firefighter and a fire technician. By Jowita Fidler.
Great Success of Czech PyroCar
It is widely known that the Czechs do not only know how to have a good time, but are also deeply interested in the fire service - its history and present condition. One of the proofs is a very popular meeting of old fire vehicles organized every three years in Litoměřice on the Elbe river. Last year our friends from the Czech Republic organized first PyroCar picnic in the town of Přibyslav. During the second edition of this event, organized at the local airfield at the end of August and the beginning of September, 25,000 people gathered to admire modern fire vehicles. By Janusz Jędrzejczyk
On Matterhorn For Adrenalin
Having reached Mont Blanc in 2005, Senior Captain Robert Paszczyk from the SFS in Złotoryja was convinced that he could target then at almost every peak. At least in Europe, where Mont Blanc is undoubtedly a turning point deciding about the class of a climber. A person who has reached the peak may just take a walk on other European summits. Is it really true? (Lew)
In the Spirit of St Florian Tradition 2
Krzysztof Krężel - a collector and historian of faleristics - describes next awards: Occasional Award "Merit for the VFS Świętochłowice", Honorary Award "Merit for the VFS Nowy Dwór Gdański", Honorary Award "Honoured Firefighter of the Biała Podlaska District" and the Member Award (corporate) of the Town and Commune Union of the VFS of the Republic of Poland in Rogoźno Wielkopolskie.
Museum With Certificate
As one of the first European museums of firefighting, the Central Museum of Firefighting in Mysłowice and its department - Museum of Firefighting of the Wielkopolska province in Rakoniewice were awarded the certificates of the International Association of Fire and Rescue Service (CTIF). The award confirms the value of the museum collection and the high standards of exhibitions. It obliges the museum to even greater creative contribution to the studies on the history of fire service and to their popularization in the society. By Elżbieta Przyłuska.
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