“Firefighters who do not have firefighting as their primary profession, who take on volunteer roles in many communities, and who possess the training, skills, and equipment capabilities of professional firefighters, and intervene in fire incidents when necessary, are referred to in the literature as "volunteer firefighters."
ŞEYMA ŞAHİN - FLS EUROPE RESOURCE ASSISTANT
International Dynamics of Disaster Volunteering and Volunteer Firefighting
Traditionally, disaster volunteering has been framed as an expression of solidarity and benevolence that emphasizes the importance of voluntary activities during crises and disasters. Such voluntary activities have been defined as filling a gap or a void of authority when official resources are scarce.
Firefighters who do not have firefighting as their primary profession, who take on volunteer roles in many communities, and who possess the training, skills, and equipment capabilities of professional firefighters, and intervene in fire incidents when necessary, are referred to in the literature as "volunteer firefighters."
Human Factor in Forest Fires
According to fire statistics from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), the total number of fires increased by 11.1% from 2021 to 2022, as 2022 marked a return to pre-COVID-19 practices.
Considering the rural aspects of forest fires, there is a growing body of literature on the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI). In the United States, there are two definitions of the WUI concept. The US Forest Service qualitatively defines WUI as "a place where people and their development meet or mix with wildland fuel." It is the transitional zone where the built environment meets undeveloped wildland areas or vegetative fuels. In this context, the WUI factor explains that the increase in forest fires from 2021 to 2022 can be attributed to the human factor.
Literature Review on Volunteer Firefighting
When considering the literature research of the past five years in the Science Direct database, limited to the keywords “volunteer” and “firefighter,” 152 results were found, with publications predominantly in the fields of social sciences, environmental science, and engineering. During this period, there is a linear increase in the number of publications.
Based on the country of publication, Australia, the United States, and Canada rank in the top three, respectively. These are countries with a higher number of rural fires.
“The concept of preparedness for forest fires is ambiguous, and being "well-prepared" is a combination of practical and mental preparation measures. The three main themes that define different aspects of mental preparation are emotional control, understanding psychological stress, and knowing when and how to implement a wildfire plan.”
Reviews in Europe and America
The percentage ratios of different firefighter categories within the total number of fire-fighters are shown by country. For example, in Portugal, Poland, Croatia, Slovakia, Germany, Slovenia, China, Switzerland, Vietnam, and Austria, the proportion of volunteer firefighters among the total number of firefighters is above 90%. In Liechtenstein, this ratio reaches 100%.
According to NFPA 1720 (Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Volunteer Fire Departments), a volunteer fire department is one where 85% or more of the department members are volunteer emergency service personnel.
Two Themes in Rural Disaster Volunteering for Forest Fires: “Rural Resourcefulness” and “Rural Resilience”
The concept of preparedness for forest fires is ambiguous, and being "well-prepared" is a combination of practical and mental preparation measures. The three main themes that define different aspects of mental preparation are emotional control, understanding psychological stress, and knowing when and how to implement a wildfire plan.
Within the scope of wildfire research, discussions about how responsibility should be shared among different actors are increasingly prevalent. For example, in Australia, the idea of shared responsibilities for wildfires between local communities and authorities is now part of national stra-tegies. Research discusses the withdrawal of resources in rural areas, where power is being shifted from local communities to larger regional centers, while at the same time, these local communities are expected to take on greater responsibilities.
“The Australian government has adopted a national volunteer strategy based on lessons learned from various natural disasters, including the "Spontaneous Volunteer Strategy" and a handbook titled "Planning for Spontaneous Volunteers." Similar guidelines have also been published in the United States and the United Kingdom.”
This trend towards centralization also characterizes the political landscape in Sweden and the relationship between urban and rural areas.
In the summer of 2018, both fire and res-cue services, as well as volunteers, fought against the large-scale forest fires that spread across the northern regions of Sweden.
One of the most notable challenges encountered was the lack of both financial and human resources provided by the state. Evaluations indicate that the shortage of official resources, combined with the long distances characteristic of Sweden's rural northern regions, was a primary reason for the widespread spread of the fires. In disaster research, volunteer activities are often described as something that fills the gap created by the scarcity of official resources. This situation seems particularly relevant in rural contexts.
For example, in a village threatened by one of the forest fires, a local grocery store expanded its role to serve as a daily gathering point. Just as in everyday life, people would go to the store to find information they couldn't get elsewhere.
Acting as an information center can be understood as an extension of its everyday and familiar duties. In this sense, the local grocery store played a central role in providing social support, and in doing so, compensated for the lack of public social support for those affected by the fire.
When taking a closer look at how local citizens interpreted the need for volunteerism during the 2018 forest fires, it becomes evident that they did so through both resourcefulness (e.g., presenting themselves as capable, rural citizens) and resistance (e.g., questioning the fact that rural fire defense largely depends on volunteer efforts).
Both arguments (resourcefulness and resistance) stem from the idea that rural disaster volunteerism is a compensatory action—something done out of necessity to make up for the lack of official resources and rural welfare services. Here, rural resource fulness is not just about local people coming together and being willing to help fight the fire.
The interviewee emphasized their signi-ficant rural competencies by stating,"I know these forests. This is where I hunt." In doing so, they also asserted their claim over this particular place and these specific forests.
Thus, the above quotation becomes a vivid example of how place and geography are intertwined with the understanding of volunteerism, and how “rural volunteerism” actions intersect with everyday rural life experiences like hunting.
“To enhance disaster preparedness, citizens can be advised to use online platforms for pre- registration as volunteers, allowing them to learn how they can assist each other during disasters.”
Local knowledge or familiarity with the forest, and habits formed from being in the forest, are highly valued by rescue personnel when seeking capable volunteers. This sentiment was expressed by one of the interviewees, a firefighter and chief commander, who said:
“I didn’t want just anyone running around in the forest. I wanted ‘forest people.’ People who know the forests and are accustomed to being there...” (Rescue Personnel)
International Volunteer Policies
A study conducted between 2019 and 2020 investigated the policies and institutional arrangements related to the participation of informal volunteers in European countries with notable differences in their volunteerism approaches (Germany, Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Estonia). The study focused on the methods and tools used, which include:
In Germany, Hungary, Finland, and Estonia, informal volunteer participation is managed temporarily. In all countries except Germany, social media is used by disaster management authorities to temporarily inform, direct, or register informal volunteers. The cases examined show that disaster response is more effective when procedures for informal volunteer participation are in place.
The Australian government has adopted a national volunteer strategy based on lessons learned from various natural disasters, including the "Spontaneous Volunteer Strategy" and a handbook titled "Planning for Spontaneous Volunteers." Similar guidelines have also been published in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Most emergency response plans in the U.S. include a volunteer acceptance center protocol that guides how informal volunteers should connect with existing organizations or volunteer groups.
In Germany, local municipalities and/or government agencies decide whether or not to collaborate with informal volunteers in each case, leading to temporary cooperation and participation during different stages of crises.
In Italy, officials at the municipal, regional, and national levels include civil protection volunteers who are responsible for supporting crisis interventions. However, only volunteers who have previously joined civil protection volunteer organizations and received specialized training are permitted to participate in disaster preparedness or response activities.
In Belgium, unlike in Italy, informal, non-official volunteers are not included in crisis interventions. However, following the severe flooding in July 2021, some media outlets established a website called "Ensemble Solidaires" aimed at maintaining the momentum of informal volunteering that occurred at the onset of the flood. The website aims to facilitate information exchange between those wanting to help and those in need by providing answers to frequently asked questions and offering a space where individuals can submit their offers of assistance.
In Hungary, volunteer participation is coordinated through the National Disaster Management Directorate General (NDGDM) according to the Disaster Management Act. Volunteer organizations can only contribute to rescue efforts if they are certified by NDGDM. Nevertheless, similar to the aforementioned situations, increasing volunteer activities by citizens are mobilizing a growing number of municipal volunteer rescue groups at both national and local levels.
In Sweden, the participation of informal volunteers is roughly organized in the form of "Voluntary Resource Groups" (FRG), which serve as an optional resource for municipal crisis management. FRGs are present in approximately half of Sweden's 290 municipalities. FRGs are responsible for accepting and organizing informal volunteers when deemed necessary by the municipality. They are also responsible for signing contracts with informal volunteers to ensure they are insured before contributing.
In Norway, short-term contracts have been established to facilitate the participation of informal volunteers in disaster response. For example, during forest fires, these contracts allow volunteers to be covered by occupational accident insurance and compensation for used equipment. The Norwegian Rescue Service is built on the tradition of neighbors helping each other. Norwegian municipalities and/or government agencies are not required to include informal volunteers in disaster management, but collaboration with local community members or non-crisis-related NGOs often yields good results.
In Finland, the role of volunteers is defined in the Rescue Act. Most volunteer activities are organized by non-profit organizations that train and employ volunteers. Both public officials and NGO representatives view this responsibility as a natural way to organize and involve informal volunteers. The largest organizer of volunteer activities is the Voluntary Rescue Service (Vapepa), a network of registered associations that prepares various trained volunteers for emergencies. Vapepa also engages informal volunteers and has established protocols for this purpose. Informal volunteers are seen as a supportive resource for official volunteers, especially during large and acute disasters.
In Estonia, municipalities and/or government agencies are not required to include informal volunteers in disaster management. Due to the decentralized nature of the disaster management system, each government agency independently conducts and organizes cooperation with volunteers. The Volunteer Reserve Rescue Team, an NGO, supports rescue teams in comprehensive natural and civil disasters (e.g., forest fires, oil spills) and works with trained volunteers. The initial and more systematic step in creating volunteer community support networks in municipalities includes establishing a contact information database that enables municipalities and rescue teams to communicate with local key individuals and residents.
“In Turkey, volunteer firefighting activities are supported by many municipalities, parti-cularly in major cities like Istanbul and Kocaeli. There has been a continuous increase in the number of trained volunteer firefighters and volunteer fire stations. However, when compared to international examples, this progress still appears insufficient.”
In summary, in Sweden and Norway, where volunteerism is more widespread, the parti-cipation of informal volunteers is regulated, and they are offered the opportunity to be officially insured. In Belgium and Italy, vo-lunteer participation in disaster manage-ment is more institutionalized, requiring specific professional skills or previous training.
In Germany, Sweden, Hungary, and Finland, official volunteer groups or organizations serve as the main contact points for informal volun-teers during cri-ses; however, these contact points and st-ructures are temporary and operate on an ad hoc basis.
In Hungary, Finland, and Sweden, clear requirements for the types of volunteers needed have be-en established and are used to organize volunteers. In Sweden and Norway, the participation of informal volunteers is the most institu-tionalized, including the use of short-term contracts that allow for insurance and reimbursements. In Estonia, there is very little experience with the involvement of spontaneous volunteers.
Volunteering Policies in Turkey
The 2005 Turkish Municipalities Law No. 5393 includes provisions for volunteer participation in municipal services under Article 77, which serves as a legal basis for volunteer activities conducted in many cities across the country:
“The municipality shall implement programs for the participation of volunteers in services related to health, education, sports, environment, social services and assistance, libraries, parks, traffic, and cultural services, as well as services for the elderly, women and children, the disabled, and the poor and needy, in order to ensure solidarity and participation in the municipality, increase efficiency, savings, and productivity in services.”
In Turkey, volunteer firefighting activities are supported by many municipalities, parti-cularly in major cities like Istanbul and Kocaeli. There has been a continuous inc-rease in the number of trained volunteer firefighters and volunteer fire stations. However, when compared to international examples, this progress still appears insufficient.
According to Article 8 of the Regulation on Volunteers Engaged in Forest Fire Fighting:
"Volunteers who participate in forest fire ex-tinguishing efforts and who die during the-se activities, as well as volunteers who are injured, fall ill, or become disabled due to their duties, will benefit from the provisions of Law No. 2330 on Cash Compensation and Pension Entitlement dated 3/11/1980, according to the reports to be obtained under the relevant legislation."
Conclusion
In most countries of the Global North, disaster management heavily relies on a workforce of professional and volunteer personnel from official institutions, with disaster management systems employing a command and control model that views other citizens as non-participants in di-saster response. This approach can lead to ineffective responses, especially in new ty-pes of emergencies. Non-profit organiza-tions, such as official disaster relief age-ncies, can act as intermediaries between emerging volunteers and other institutions responsible for disaster relief. They can provide training on how to quickly recognize the capacity of emerging volunteers and on when and for what purposes/tasks these volunteers should be utilized. Emergency cooperation exercises can be integrated into disaster preparedness activities, and additional liaison officers can be established to improve connections with volunteers.
To enhance disaster preparedness, citizens can be advised to use online platforms for pre-registration as volunteers, allowing them to learn how they can assist each other during disasters.
“Most emergency response plans in the U.S. include a volunteer acceptance center protocol that guides how informal volunteers should connect with existing organizations or volunteer groups.”
Comments