Proposed policy to reward brave actions in extinguishing fires

Delegate Duong Van Phuoc discusses in group. Photo: V.HIEU

Discussing at Group 5, delegate Duong Van Phuoc - Deputy Head of the National Assembly Delegation of Quang Nam province proposed that the Drafting Committee consider adding to Article 11 a clause regulating the act of "prohibiting the production and trading of fake and poor quality fire prevention and fighting equipment".

According to delegate Duong Van Phuoc, in reality, there are fake, poor quality fire extinguishers on the market at quite attractive prices; or fire hydrants are built but no agency checks, leading to no water and inoperability. This is very dangerous if a fire or explosion occurs, and it is impossible to proactively and promptly extinguish the fire. Therefore, this content must be included in the prohibition.

Regarding construction planning, project establishment, construction design, and motor vehicle design, delegates said that the guidance on developing plans for facilities and techniques for fire prevention and fighting for each type and function of use in the past has had many different, patchy, and inconsistent opinions.

Therefore, the draft regulation in Article 14 stating that “When establishing and adjusting planning for residential areas, industrial zones and clusters, designing new constructions, and motor vehicles, there must be solutions and fire prevention and fighting designs…” is extremely necessary. Delegates suggested that this regulation must be stable in the long term, with limited changes to create favorable conditions for affected organizations and individuals, ensuring the development of production and business activities.

Regarding the scope of search and rescue operations of the Fire Prevention and Rescue Force, delegate Duong Van Phuoc proposed adding "maritime and aviation traffic accidents" to the scope of search and rescue operations of the Fire Prevention and Rescue Force as prescribed in Clause 2, Article 33 to participate in coordinating to overcome the consequences when an incident occurs.

Regarding the fire prevention and rescue force, according to the delegate, the Law on Forces Participating in Protecting Security and Order at the Grassroots Level (effective from July 1, 2024) stipulates in Article 9 on supporting fire prevention and rescue. Accordingly, it stipulates that "Forces participating in protecting security and order at the grassroots level, upon request, guidance, and assignment of the commune-level police, support the civil defense force in fire prevention and rescue activities in the area under their charge or other areas when mobilized".

However, the Fire Prevention and Rescue Force (Article 40) according to this draft Law on Fire Prevention and Rescue does not use forces to participate in protecting security and order at the grassroots level, but establishes and manages grassroots and specialized civil defense, fire prevention and rescue forces (Article 41) and becomes the main force for fire prevention and rescue. The Drafting Committee is requested to clarify the above issue: Is there consistency between the two laws? Why does the civil defense force still exist? According to the provisions of the draft law, in villages and residential groups, there exist two forces with the same overlapping tasks.

Fire prevention and rescue equipment, the draft law stipulates including 4 fire prevention and rescue forces, however, the provision of fire prevention and rescue equipment is only regulated for civil defense forces; facilities, households, motor vehicles (Article 46) and Fire Prevention and Rescue Police force (Article 47) but not regulated for specialized fire prevention and rescue forces.

Therefore, delegate Duong Van Phuoc proposed to consider and add the regulation "Equipping means for specialized fire prevention and rescue forces" to the draft law.

Discussion scene at Group 5. Photo: V.HIEU

Regarding equipment for establishments, households, and motor vehicles, delegates said that the regulation "Households within their capacity and conditions shall equip themselves with fire prevention and rescue equipment" is unclear and does not ensure on-site fire prevention and fighting work and promptly extinguish fires as soon as they arise. Therefore, it is recommended that specific regulations be made for each urban and rural area, each business sector, etc. to require the equipment of corresponding fire prevention and fighting equipment.

Regarding the regime and policies for people participating in fire fighting and rescue, in addition to the insurance regime and allowances for injuries and deaths stipulated in the draft law, delegate Duong Van Phuoc proposed adding a timely reward policy for officers, soldiers and people who bravely extinguish fires and rescue people in fires and incidents.

The regulation that facilities that do not meet fire prevention and fighting requirements and were put into use before the effective date of the Fire Prevention and Fighting Law No. 27/2001/QH10 must complete the remediation of fire prevention and fighting safety requirements according to the content and roadmap prescribed by the People's Council of the province or centrally-run city; delegates believe that this content is a state management task, related to professional expertise, not a regulation on mechanisms, policies, and funding standards at the local level. Therefore, it is appropriate to assign this authority to the Provincial People's Committee or the provincial-level police agency to prescribe the content and roadmap.

Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/de-xuat-chinh-sach-khen-thuong-kip-thoi-doi-voi-hanh-dong-dung-cam-dap-tat-dam-chay-cuu-nguoi-3136616.html