Tue, Apr 13, 2021 page14

• Practical measures reduce fires during Tomb Sweeping Festival in Tainan 清明連假墓地火災比去年少 南消：「三用」奏效

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  The four-day Tomb Sweeping Day long weekend is over. According to the Tainan City Government Fire Bureau, there were 143 fires in cemeteries and wooded areas during the same period around Tomb Sweeping Day last year. To reduce the occurrence of cemetery fires and save firefighters from getting exhausted as they rush around putting out fires, the Fire Bureau, as well as advising the public how to prevent fires, has also developed several effective tools for preventing and fighting fires in cemeteries, including drone broadcasts, leaf-blower fire extinguishers and fire-extinguishing brooms, which were all developed inexpensively. The Fire Bureau says that these firefighting tools and strategies proved effective during this year’s Tomb Sweeping Day long weekend, during which cemetery, wood and scrub fires have been reduced to 104 incidents.

  The Fire Bureau believes that the “three uses” demanded by Mayor Huang Wei-che, namely using big data to identify hotspots, using technology to assist in rescue operations and using case studies to reinforce public information, have proven effective at preventing and extinguishing fires. The Police Bureau’s Traffic Police Corps also says that because of the continued threat of COVID-19 outbreaks, with regard to people and vehicles involved in tomb sweeping during this year’s festival, traffic flows around Tainan’s 30 main cemeteries and columbaria were all significantly down on last year, but there were still large numbers of visitors and vehicles at 12 major scenic areas within the jurisdiction. The Police Bureau set up a total of 178 traffic control posts and mobilized 2,495 police officers to maintain the free flow of traffic around cemeteries, scenic areas and all main roads.

  To strengthen disaster prevention around Tomb Sweeping Day this year, the city government’s Bureau of Civil Affairs Bureau and district offices reduced the accumulation of combustible materials ahead of time by weeding public cemeteries and carting refuse away. The Fire Bureau, for its part, drew up practical prevention and rescue measures for cemeteries within its jurisdiction where fires have frequently broken out in the past and where rugged terrain makes rescue operations difficult, and it also promoted fire prevention.

  

  A fire burns in a cemetery in Tainan in March. 台南一處墓園三月發生火警。

  Photo courtesy of a member of the public 照片：民眾提供

  This year the city government has adopted the additional measure of making public information announcements from garbage trucks as they travel along the streets and using drones to broadcast fire prevention measures in public cemeteries, reminding the public that when paying respect to their ancestors they should make sure that any flames are extinguished before leaving. It also set up a plan to dispatch personnel and vehicles to patrol cemeteries where fires have broken out relatively frequently and during the periods when that is most likely to happen, or to station personnel to watch out and provide people with bags of water to douse the embers after burning ghost money, so as to avoid causing wildfires.

  Fire Bureau Commissioner Lee Ming-feng says that to promote fire prevention for this year’s Tomb Sweeping Festival, the authorities have adopted electronic communications, with an emphasis on broadcasts, scrolling LED message boards or using drones for airborne broadcasts over cemeteries to remind people who are out sweeping graves to pay attention to fire safety. To fight fires more effectively, the bureau has purchased various kinds of lightweight firefighting equipment, thinking imaginatively about every way of fighting fires and reducing the heavy burden for firefighters of deploying fire hoses over long distances when entering cemeteries to put out fires. These measures have greatly improved the efficacy of firefighting and rescue operations in mountain forests and cemeteries.

  (Translated by Julian Clegg, Taipei Times)

  

  A drone flies overhead as firefighters extinguish a fire in a cemetery in Tainan in March. 消防員三月在台南一處墓園滅火，一架無人機在他們上空飛行。

  Photo courtesy of a member of the public 照片：民眾提供

  清明連假四天已經結束，台南政府消防局統計去年清明同時期墓地林野火災有一百四十三件，為減少墓地火災及消防員疲於奔命滅火，消防局向民眾宣導防火之餘、也研發出無人機廣播、吹葉滅火器與打火掃把等多種墓地消防利器，改造費用低廉。消防局表示，這些消防利器與策略在清明連假奏效，今年清明連假墓地林草火災減少到一百零四件。

  消防局認為，市長黃偉哲要求的運用大數據了解熱區、運用科技協助救災、運用案例加強宣導等「三用」發揮防、救災功效。市警局交通大隊也說，今年清明掃墓人、車潮因武漢肺炎（新冠病毒，COVID-19）疫情持續延燒，南市三十處主要公墓及納骨塔周邊道路車流均較去年明顯減少，但轄區十二大風景區仍出現人、車潮，警局累計規劃交通崗一百七十八處、動員二千四百九十五名警力維持墓區、風景區與各主要道路交通順暢。

  為加強清明減災作為，今年清明節前夕，市府民政局與各區公所預先對公墓除草及清運，減少可燃物的堆積；消防局除了針對轄內以往發生火災頻率高、地形崎嶇及搶救不易的墓區研擬策訂具體防救作為，也積極進行防火宣導。

  今年市府更加入跟隨垃圾車沿街宣導及運用無人機在公墓區廣播防火作為，提醒民眾祭祖確認火苗熄滅後再離開，另對於發生火災頻率較高的墓區及時段，亦規劃派遣人車巡邏或駐點警戒，並提供水袋給民眾在燃燒冥紙後澆熄火源，以免引發林野火災。

  消防局長李明?說，今年清明防火宣導採電子化宣導、著重在廣播、跑馬燈或利用無人機在公墓區上空廣播提醒掃墓民眾注意用火安全。為提高搶救效能增購多款輕量救災裝備，發揮各種滅火方式巧思，減輕消防人員進墓區長途佈水線救災的重擔，大幅提升山林與墓區火災搶救效率。

  （自由時報）
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