"Chief Brigadier Wiesław Leśniakiewicz was appointed to the position of the Chief Commandant of the State Fire Service on 3 January. The deputy prime minister, the minister of interior and administration, Grzegorz Schetyna, and the director of the Department of Crisis Management and Defence Matters of the Ministry of Interior and Administration, Zenon Sobejko, participated in the ceremony of assignment of duties, which took place in the National Headquarters of the SFS.
The deputy chief commandants of the SFS have also been replaced: Chief Brigadier Janusz Skulich, Chief Brigadier Marek Kowalski and Senior Brigadier Piotr Kwiatkowski have been the new deputy chief commandants of the SFS since 9 January. (own info)
INTERVIEW OF THE MONTH
Reappearing Epidemic
"Improved standards of the fire investigations can be achieved by system solutions - new law, which would precisely define professional qualifications of court experts and law enforcement agencies," claims Brigadier Barbara Ościłowska Ph.D. (own info).
Rail Disaster
We could barely cope with bird flu. This lesson should teach us something, since the virus will return and new infectious diseases will appear, says Tadeusz Wijaszka, the director of the National Veterinary Research Institute in Puławy. (own info)
Paintshop on Fire
For the employees of the furniture works of the Exwood company in Raciąski Młyn, the Tuchola district, the day of 16 October started just like any other day. All production halls had been operating since early morning. With the water installations being renovated, the paintshop seemed to be the only quiet place. By Krzysztof Łangowski
Dangerous Level Crossings
The December 2007 issue of Fire Review included an article about a rescue action after an accident on a level crossing in the district of Świecie. One month prior to the accident the rescuers from the Kujawy-Pomerania province had an opportunity to verify their skills in quieter conditions. Anna Detmer describes the exercises.
Firefighters Rescued Gas Victims
A firefighting vehicle and an ambulance reached the incident site almost simultaneously - at 11:30 pm. They found there broken windows and terrified inhabitants of Rożnowo (the Lower Silesia province). It was a son of the house owners, who, having realized that the gas is to be smelled everywhere, broke the window panes without a second thought. Lech Lewandowski describes the rescue action.
Man in a Well
The rescuers did not even imagine how much effort it takes to rescue a victim from a filled well. Report by Paweł Frątczak
Beam Solar Radiation as a Cause of Fires
Burning Sun
Beam solar radiation may be a direct or indirect cause of fires, but several conditions need to be fulfilled for the fire to appear. By Tomasz Sawicki
Flammability of the Combustible Dust Layer
The possibility of dust to burn or explode is a serious danger for different technological operations in many industries, stock management and in transport, i.e. everywhere, where crumbled solid substances may be used. By Marzena Półka
Environmental Time Bomb
Watching global economic development and the demand for the oil products, it is worth to trace back the history of the environmental disasters in the last years. This will make us realize how significant danger they pose and how important factor of the system the ecological rescue is. By Maciej Pietrzak
Dangerous Variety of a Very Large Forrest Fire
Fire Storm
Wide-spread fire, running fire, conflagration, fire bomb, or, finally: fire storm - all these are the names of one disastrous phenomenon. How does it develop, what are its characteristic features, and is it possible to suppress it? By Jarosław Zarzycki
Mobile Control Point
In the Podlasie province the dispatchers operating in a communication center work in a mobile control point. It has its own energy source and provides the dispatchers with necessary work comfort during long rescue actions. By Zbigniew Chrzanowski and Maciej Bolek
Psychologist in the Fire Service: Facts and Myths
What can one expect from a psychologist employed in the fire service? What is its role? No matter how many similar questions may be asked, it is obvious that a psychologist in a uniformed service is not only helpful, but rather necessary, especially in such a service as the State Fire Service. By Marta Różycka
Where is the SFS going to?
The 15th anniversary of the State Fire Service, successor of the professional fire service, makes us think, what kind of service we want to and can be, what limits us, what are the dangers and what problems we have to solve. By Dariusz Marczyński
Assessment of Civil Service Workers
Article 54 of the Civil Service Act of 24 August 2006 (Dz. U. no. 170, item 1218 with subsequent amendments) requires a description and assessment of the positions in the civil service. The provision says that the prime minister is obliged to issue a decree concerning the rules of describing and assessing the posts. By Marta Szpakowska
Train the Trainers in the Main School of Fire Service
At the end of the last year the Main School of Fire Service in Warsaw again hosted an international training Train the Trainers, which prepares chosen representatives from all EU Member States to be the trainers of the EU Community Mechanism for Civil Protection. By Tomasz Węgliński and Adriana Krzemińska
Air Arsonists (5)
The European history of arsons from the air has been already described. However, on the other side of the globe there was another equally cruel war, started by people, who refused the defeated the right to dignity and life. This proved how dangerous weapon the aviation may be. The last article in the series by Paweł Rochala
100 years (off and on) at 3 Chłodna street
Museum with History in the Background
The fire service in Warsaw is 171 years old. Apart from 17 fire and rescue units it has also its own museum, which carefully preserves the remembrances of technology, organization and, first of all, courage and glory of the Warsaw firefighters for the next generations. By Jerzy Linder
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