Work Log of Volunteer Fire Brigade During the 6.25 War Discovered... Gyeonggi-do Fire Department to Pursue Cultural Heritage Registration

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] The oldest volunteer fire brigade duty logbook in Korea, recorded 70 years ago, has been discovered.

The Gyeonggi-do Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced on the 16th that they found one duty logbook written by the volunteer fire brigade of Namyang-myeon, Hwaseong-gun, from May 13 to October 24, 1953, covering a period of five months.

The duty logbook was written daily on one printed regulation form, recording the duty date, weather, instructions, special notes, duty details, and names of handed-over items. All records were handwritten in Chinese characters, with the writer signing in their own handwriting and the approver stamping it. The size of the logbook is approximately 183 mm wide and 258 mm tall, about the size of B5 paper.

At that time, during the special situation of the Korean War, the volunteer fire brigade was reorganized as an air defense unit, so the writer is listed as 'Namyang-myeon Air Defense Unit (南陽面 防空團)'.

Reviewing the records reveals that the volunteer fire brigade operated very systematically, similar to modern fire stations. It shows a 24/7 duty system, including nights and holidays. Notably, this duty logbook is evidence of the historical fact that the volunteer fire brigade was reorganized into an air defense unit, and as the only record from 70 years ago, it is the oldest fire brigade duty logbook confirmed to date, thus highly valued as a cultural asset.

Jo Seon-ho, head of the Gyeonggi-do Fire and Disaster Headquarters, said, "The discovered duty logbook is a product of efforts by local residents to protect community safety during difficult times," adding, "Because it is a very precious record with high historical preservation value, we will also pursue registering it as a cultural asset."

Meanwhile, the Fire and Disaster Headquarters plans to donate this material to the National Fire Museum, scheduled to open in 2025 in Gwangmyeong City, so that all citizens can view it. Furthermore, they plan to expand research on the history of Gyeonggi-do firefighting.

Starting with the establishment of the Suwon Fire Brigade in Gyeonggi-do in 1909, the Gyeonggi-do volunteer fire brigade boasts over 120 years of history and tradition. Currently, it is organized into 430 units at city, county, and town levels, with about 12,000 members actively engaged in fire response, daily safety rescue, and various fields to ensure the safety of Gyeonggi-do residents.