Fire department in Hungary

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The beginnings of the fire service in Hungary go back to 1870. The current fire-fighting system is based on Act No. XXXI from 1996 (as of 2011) on fire protection. According to this law, the fire brigades are the fire protection authorities, fire protection supervisory authorities and fire investigation authorities. In addition, Decree 1/2003 of the Hungarian Ministry of the Interior, which obliges the fire brigades to fight fires and provide technical assistance, as well as Decree 2/2003 on alerting and supporting emergency and rescue services in emergencies and damage cases apply.

General

Up to the year 2000, the fire and rescue services as well as civil and disaster control were organized decentrally through the Hungarian Ministry of the Interior and the Hungarian Ministry of Defense. Since 2000, these two areas have been subordinate to the disaster control authority of the Ministry of the Interior (National Directorate General for Disaster Management; short: NDGDM).

Professional fire brigade

The professional fire brigade in Hungary is financed by the state through the municipalities. This finances the staffing and operational costs. On the other hand, they are financed by insurance companies. These are expenses for vehicle and equipment technology as well as for personal protective equipment. These monies come from home insurance and the fines. Hungary has around 95 professional fire brigades with a total of around 8,400 professional fire fighters.

Volunteer firefighter

The voluntary fire brigade in Hungary is divided into two areas.

State municipal volunteer fire department

The state municipal volunteer fire brigades are part of the local municipality. Their areas of responsibility are determined by the Ministry of the Interior and financed by the state. Currently (as of 2011) there are 42 state municipal volunteer fire brigades with 850 active emergency services.

Independent volunteer fire departments

The independent volunteer fire brigades have their own rules and administrative regulations and are not subject to direct state control. These volunteer fire brigades decide for themselves how they are available to support other aid and rescue organizations. The training of the emergency services has to be carried out as with the state volunteer fire brigades. In total there are currently (as of 2011) 822 independent volunteer fire brigades in 13,500 active emergency services.

Company fire brigade

With the decree 118/1996 it was determined that certain companies and facilities have to set up their own fire brigade unit. Depending on the size of the company or the facility, the fire brigade must comprise between 4 and 16 active emergency services. The same technical regulations apply to training and equipment as to professional fire brigades and the state municipal volunteer fire brigades. Currently (as of 2011) there are 288 company fire brigades with 4,600 active emergency services throughout Hungary.

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