Fire Agency Expands Mountain Fire Response with 21 New Rough Terrain Pump Trucks

Reinforcement of 9 Seats in Gangwon and 6 Seats in Gyeongbuk Among the 21st Assembly

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] The National Fire Agency announced on the 17th that it will introduce 21 rugged pump trucks (wildfire specialized firefighting vehicles) this year to minimize damage to forests, homes, and facilities caused by forest fires.

The rugged pump truck is specialized equipment capable of driving on rugged and mountainous terrain with a 45-degree slope, can operate in water depths up to 1.2 meters, and can spray water while driving.

Considering the continuous occurrence of large-scale damage from forest fires such as the 2000 East Coast wildfire, the 2005 Yangyang wildfire, and the 2019 Gangneung-Donghae wildfire, four rugged pump trucks were first introduced in Gangwon Province in 2020, and since then, 26 units have been reinforced and are currently in operation.

Rough Terrain Pump Truck (Wildfire Specialized Firefighting Vehicle)

The rugged pump trucks aim to expand to 64 units over four years starting from 2021, with a total project scale of 48 billion KRW (50% national and 50% local government funding).

Of the 21 rugged pump trucks introduced this year, 15 will be deployed in Gangwon and Gyeongbuk provinces, which accounted for 32% of nationwide forest fire occurrences and 82% of the damaged area over the past 10 years, while the remaining six will be allocated one each to Seoul, Chungbuk, Chungnam, Jeonbuk, Jeonnam, and Changwon.

Going forward, rugged pump trucks will continue to be distributed for spring and autumn forest fire prevention and defense of adjacent facilities, and will be actively deployed at various disaster sites such as general fires, vehicle fires, hazardous material fires, flood sites, and water supply support.

Meanwhile, in September last year, in response to the flooding in Pohang City, Gyeongbuk Province caused by Typhoon Hinnamnor, 10 out of 14 rugged pump trucks were dispatched under a nationwide mobilization order to assist with response and recovery efforts.

Baek Deok-gon, Director of the Equipment Technology Bureau at the National Fire Agency, stated, “We will do our best to minimize damage from disasters and protect the public by reinforcing advanced equipment necessary for national-level disaster response,” and added, “We will strive to ensure continuous government financial investment in the development and distribution of advanced firefighting equipment.”