EU funds help: Firefighters in Nový Jičín have modern facilities thanks to EU funds

The town of Nový Jičín supported the project of a new station by donating the land. "This building of the central fire station houses the district firefighting unit which is a core unit for the territory of the Nový Jičín district. It has 45 members in three shifts plus the station commander. There are also offices of the territorial department, i.e. the directorate and specialised sections," said Petr Adamus, director of the Nový Jičín territorial department of the Fire and Rescue Service of the Moravian-Silesian Region (FRS MSR). The Nový Jičín fire unit uses the common areas, garages for firefighting vehicles, storage premises and the technical part with workshops.

In total, the construction of the new Central Fire Station Nový Jičín cost CZK 296 million, of that CZK 122.5 million was provided from the Integrated Regional Operational Programme. The rest of the money was covered from the state budget and resources of the FRS MSR.

THE OLD STATION WAS NO LONGER SUITABLE
Originally, the fire brigade in Nový Jičín used the building in Zborovská street, which was built as early as 1905. After an extension of the station in 2000, the territorial department directorate was also moved here. The building gradually ceased to suit the fire department in terms of technical facilities and an insufficient number of parking spaces.

By contrast, in the new station, firefighters can conduct training, professional preparation and have the vehicles in one place, which was not possible in the past. Moreover, the conditions for the performance of state administration in the field of fire prevention and safety and contact with the public have improved.

"An advantage of the station's new location is its immediate connection to the D48 motorway transiting to Poland with a high traffic density and, unfortunately, a large number of traffic accidents. The response from the original station in the town centre to the main transit road through the town was very complicated and risky," said Kamila Langerová, the spokeswoman for the Fire and Rescue Service of the Moravian-Silesian Region.
 
The work of firefighters today does not only include putting out fires, as one might think. "The largest number of operations are technical responses which include, for example, rescuing people from lifts or emergency opening of apartments, stinging insects in the summer months or various clean-ups after traffic accidents," Petr Adamus explained. Apart from extinguishing fires, firefighters also clean up after leaks of dangerous chemical substances, remove the consequences of wind storms or pump water from cellars. They also cooperate with the emergency medical service.

The Nový Jičín territorial department has three professional stations - in Nový Jičín, Bílovec and Kopřivnice. Applicants for a position in the fire service must meet strict criteria. "There is interest in working in the fire and rescue service, but of course the admission conditions are not easy. The applicant must pass psychological tests, physical tests as well as a medical examination. A large number of applicants do not pass the admissions process," said Petr Adamus.

Firefighters from Nový Jičín respond to several emergencies a day. However, in the case of heavy rainfall or windstorms, the number of departures from all three stations in the district increases significantly.

THE MODERN BUILDING WON AN AWARD
The new modern fire station in Nový Jičín has already been noticed beyond the borders of the Moravian-Silesian Region. The modern complex won the main prize in the Construction of the Year 2024 competition of the Zlín Region in the category of buildings built outside the territory of that region. It was entered into the competition by the construction contractor - the company VW WACHAL.

The birth of the station took some time. The study was created already in November 2009 and then the design documentation was drawn up. At the same time, financing options were sought. The construction was eventually supported by EU funds. The aim was to ensure adequate resilience of the new fire station to the effects of extraordinary events and new risks brought about by the ongoing climate change.

The buildings of the new central fire station in Nový Jičín are structurally and technically designed in such a way as to withstand all the risks arising from excessive snowfall, massive ice formation and drought that occur in the territory. The modern facility thus enables a problem-free and efficient dispatch of response vehicles to emergency situations at any time. Thanks to this, the impact of the emergencies on the territory, its inhabitants, infrastructure and environment is reduced.
 
"An advantage of the station's new location is its immediate connection to the D48 motorway with a high traffic density and, unfortunately, a large number of traffic accidents.” Kamila Langerová, spokesperson of the regional FRS
 
NEW FIRE STATION PROVIDES TOP-NOTCH FACILITIES. In Nový Jičín, thanks to more than one hundred million Czech crowns in support from EU funds, a modern building has been built, providing facilities for local firefighters. They could thus leave the old station that did not meet the capacity requirements and was in an unsuitable location.
 According to Petr Adamus, who heads the territorial department of the FRS (pictured below in the middle), firefighters today not only respond to fires, but often are called to accidents and other extraordinary events.

Photo: Deník daily/Radim Šlezingr