Vol. 261 No. 7
asked the Minister for Local Government the number of fire officers and their staff in each county; their total aggregate number; if his Department conduct regular inspections of premises; and, if so, if he will give details of the type of inspections and the intervals at which they are carried out.
146.
asked the Minister for Local Government if he is aware of a recommendation by the Chief Fire Officers' Association that a national fire board be set up in this country; if he considers it desirable; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
147.
asked the Minister for Local Government the number of people fatally injured in fire accidents in the last five years.
With your permission, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 145, 146 and 147 together.
The first part of the reply to Question No. 145 is in the form of a tabular statement which, with the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to circulate with the Official Report.
Under the Fire Brigades Act, 1940, sanitary authorities are obliged to make reasonable provision for the prompt and efficient extinguishing of fires in their areas and for the protection and rescue of persons and property from fire injury.
The Act also empowers these authorities to inspect any buildings which are believed to be or suspected to be potentially dangerous from a fire point of view. My Department have no statutory power to carry out such inspections.
I have not got the information requested by the Deputy in relation to the numbers of people fatally injured in fire accidents in the last five years. Figures supplied annually to my Department by fire brigade authorities indicate, however, that fatalities resulting from fires attended by fire brigades for the period in question were as follows: years ended 31st March in each case: 1966-67— 20; 1967-68—26; 1968-69—31; 1969-70—32; and 1970-71—42.
With regard to the other matters raised by the Deputy, I would refer him to my reply of 13th April last, in which I indicated that the main structure of the fire service is currently being reviewed in the context of local government reorganisation generally, and that this review covers an examination of the position in relation to fire protection and prevention, publicity and education aspects, the need for and the form of new organisational arrangements and a detailed review of the 1940 Act to determine whether amending legislation is necessary to strengthen the powers of sanitary authorities, particularly, in relation to fire prevention. In addition, a new code of building regulations, under the Local Government (Planning and Development) Act, 1963, incorporating fire protection measures, is in course of preparation.
Following is the statement:
Staff employed in the fire service for year ended 31st March, 1971.
|
County |
Chief Fire Officers |
Other Officers |
Firemen |
Total |
|
Carlow |
see Kildare |
8 |
26 |
34 |
|
Cavan |
1 |
22 |
63 |
86 |
|
Clare |
1 |
14 |
69 |
84 |
|
Cork |
2 |
55 |
215 |
272 |
|
Donegal |
Vacant |
11 |
71 |
82 |
|
Dublin and Dún Laoghaire |
2 |
92 |
362 |
456 |
|
Galway |
1 |
18 |
79 |
98 |
|
Kerry |
Vacant |
17 |
71 |
88 |
|
Kildare |
1 |
13 |
40 |
54 |
|
Kilkenny |
1 |
14 |
57 |
72 |
|
Laois |
1 |
18 |
59 |
78 |
|
Leitrim |
See Sligo |
15 |
46 |
61 |
|
Limerick |
1 |
16 |
59 |
76 |
|
Longford |
Vacant |
10 |
40 |
50 |
|
Louth |
1 |
16 |
34 |
51 |
|
Mayo |
1 |
24 |
109 |
134 |
|
Meath |
1 |
20 |
61 |
82 |
|
Monaghan |
No Post |
9 |
33 |
42 |
|
Offaly |
See Laois |
15 |
55 |
70 |
|
Roscommon |
1 |
6 |
40 |
47 |
|
Sligo |
1 |
10 |
32 |
43 |
|
Tipperary(NR) |
Vacant |
13 |
52 |
65 |
|
Tipperary(SR) |
1 |
10 |
43 |
54 |
|
Waterford |
1 |
22 |
75 |
98 |
|
Westmeath |
See Longford |
10 |
38 |
48 |
|
Wexford |
Vacant |
9 |
42 |
51 |
|
Wicklow |
1 |
20 |
68 |
89 |
|
TOTALS |
19 |
507 |
1,939 |
2,465 |
I am certain that the Parliamentary Secretary will agree that the figures for the past five years as quoted by him are alarming in that they show an increase of over 100 per cent. Would he consider having some courses on fire control on television covering the use of fire extinguishers and so on?
Further proposals are being considered with special emphasis on prevention and education. A very wide publicity campaign was carried out on television in Britain some time ago. I am afraid that the reports on its effectiveness do not encourage us to spend a lot of money on this kind of publicity. Nevertheless, it is necessary to educate the people and particularly young people and this matter is being considered. Very useful films are available to schools and are shown in the larger centres of school population.
We are now coming into the summer season and there is quite a considerable number of marquees throughout the country. Is there any form of treatment for tents and marquees?
That is a separate question.
Marquees like any buildings or fixtures come under the Planning Act, 1963. The person who erects a marquee must have planning permission. When his application for planning permission is being considered the planning authority will ensure that there are adequate fire protection measures available. This is the duty of the local authority. Local authorities through their fire officers ensure that there are adequate fire precautions in regard to marquees and buildings.
Question No. 148 postponed.
