Israel Fire and Rescue Services
The fire service in Israel is organized by the state. Sherutei Kaba'ut VeHatzala (Hebrew: שירותי כבאות והצלה, English:. Israel Fire and Rescue Services) is in Israel responsible for the fire and rescue service. The organization works in cooperation with Magen David Adom, the national Red Cross society of Israel. Current Director of the Authority is Shimon Romach.
Organization
24 urban areas have central fire stations, supported by smaller stations in the area. 5 Singles fire stations there are in Jerusalem, the main fire station is located in the Giv'at Mordechai district.
The Israel Fire and Rescue Services have over 1,200 professional firefighters and 200 to 400 volunteer "Fire - scouts". The equipment is mainly produced in the country. Vehicles are modified in the kibbutz Bet Alfa based on Mercedes -Benz, MAN, Iveco, Chevrolet and Ford chassis. Aircraft Firefighting from the air are not available. The fire department radio operates on an analog broadband network from Motorola.
History
After a fire in Zichron Yaakov in 1897, a first fire department unit was set up at the instigation of Baron Rothschild. The unit had 32 members, their equipment was brought from Paris. Another unit was founded in 1925 in Tel Aviv to the flooding of the burner area, here also the first fire station was built in the country.
With the independence of Israel in 1948 fire brigades were established in most of the Jewish settlements, as in Petah Tikva, Jerusalem, Haifa, Hadera, Rehovot, Nahariya, Bnei Brak, Ramat Gan, Givatayim, Afula, Herzliya, Kfar Saba, Holon, Netanya and Rishon LeZion.
This was followed with the state of Israel consolidation facilities in Acre and Beersheba, at Ben Gurion International Airport, the oil refineries in Haifa and the ports of Haifa and Ashdod. The Fire Fighting Services Law of 1959, the existing volunteer fire departments were converted in 1960 into professional fire brigades.
On 2 December 2010 the largest forest fires in the history of the state of Israel journeyed from. The fires in the Carmel Mountains in northern Israel over 40 people died and many were injured. In the forest fires of the fire was only inadequate and outdated extinguisher available. Only with the help of foreign firefighters and firefighting aircraft from several countries, the fires could be deleted.
The Israeli firefighters complained for years about too few staff and outdated equipment. Prime Minister Netanyahu said that firefighters from the air should be taken in the future by its own fire brigade troops. Israeli media have criticized authorities and the state, as the country too much on the military armor would have concentrated and have neglected the disaster.