REORGANIZATION OF THE IRAQI FIRE SERVICE By Robert Triozzi Dr. Ali Saeed Sadoon, Director General of the Iraqi Civil Defense Directorate and Chief Robert Triozzi, head of the Fire Rescue Development Program were the protagonists at the recent Conference on Reconstructing the infrastructure of Iraq. The Iraq Reconstruction Conference took place at the Bahrain Exhibition Center in Manama, capital of the Persian Gulf's island kingdom from 13 thru 15 September 2004. The event, organized by Penwell Publications, was held under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Prime Minister of Bahrain. The scope of the conference was to address the problems and to start to provide solutions to reconstruct Iraq's Petroleum Sector, Water, Telecommunications, Power Generation, Fire and Emergency Services. Speakers included representatives of the Iraqi Government and international experts in each of the aforementioned categories. Among those in attendence were the Iraqi Ambassador to Bahrain, the Iraqi Minister of Energy and from Great Britain, HRH Prince Michael of Kent. Dr. Ali spoke of the Civil Defense Directorate, which is the Iraqi Fire Service. It was originally organized in 1941 and has gone from being an entity of the Ministry of the Interior to part the Defense Ministry, then organized on a municipal level to once again and finally return to the Interior Ministry in 1977. The Iraqi Director General outlined the role of Civil Defense in Iraqi society and how, although it is not a military organization, much of its responsibilities include military activities. Among these, are: the maintenance of air raid shelters, providing early warnings of imminent attacks, identification of areas contaminated by unexploded ordinance (UXO) and the disposal of same. He continued his presentation with a synopsis of achievements attained under his leadership, which began in April 2003. These endeavors dealt with primarily getting the basic necessities to a Fire Service that had been badly destroyed by the war - along with all of Iraq's infrastructure. Some help came by the delivery of 300 fire apparatus that had been ordered prior to the war through the United Nations Oil for Food Program. Other assistance had been leant by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) which has contracted out for equipment and services, such as training. However, he mentioned that contracts are often awarded without coordinating the details with his office or taking into consideration the realities of Iraq and he is more often than not told which vendors will supply what equipment and services. In conclusion, Dr. Ali presented the course for the future which will: increase the size of the force, open new firehouses, improve communications, augment the rescue capabilities, implement training on various levels and begin to develop specializations within the service. Chief Robert Triozzi presented solutions for Sustainable Development of the Iraqi Fire Service. Chief Triozzi is the former United Nations Fire Chief, founder and head of the Fire Rescue Development Program (F.R.D.P.). The F.R.D.P. is a non profit, non governmental organization (N.G.O.) comprised of firefighters from 9 countries on 4 continents. It is headquarterd in Rome, Italy with offices in Chicago, USA and Johannesburg, South Africa. The F.R.D.P. was created to assist firefighters in the developing world and in war torn countries. The F.R.D.P. is the only Fire Rescue NGO recognized by the United Nations and its members are the only firefighters in the world to serve as delegates to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). Within the United Nations the F.R.D.P. is most active in areas related to Disaster Impact Reduction and is very involved in promoting Sustainable Development for the Fire Services of poorer nations. The F.R.D.P. lead a mission in Iraq in July 2003 to evaluate the Iraqi Fire Service and to provide recommendations for its reorganization. The F.R.D.P. Team visited all parts of Iraq from the Turkish border in the north to Kuwait in the south. The concept of Sustainable Development was introduced by Chief Triozzi at the Reconstruction Conference. Sustainable Development is to provide assistance which will allow the local firefighters to grow and evolve and to implement programs which will continue long after international aid leaves town. In a nutshell, programs that help them help themselves. He pointed out that it is imperative to development that the help being offered a country, such as Iraq, is indeed help. All too often those wanting to help take initiatives that neither reflect realities nor take into consideration what actual needs are. An example would be the "assistance" that the International Organization for Migration (IOM) offered to the Basra Fire Department. The money at their disposal to help the Fire Service was utilized to paint the firehouse pink while firefighters were fighting fires with no gloves, boots, helmets or any protective clothing whatsoever. This was not help. This was not an example of providing a postive impact on the Iraqi firefighters. It was neither cost effective nor practical. The basic philosophy of the F.R.D.P., which has been proven successful in many parts of the world, include solutions that are: Low Tech, Simple, Practical and above all, Applicable Locally. The 28 year veteran of the Fire Service went on to state that the history, culture and mentality of a country must be understood and respected before engaging in any programs for Fire Service reorganization. What may seem perfectly obvious and logical in Boston, Melbourne or Tokyo may not necessarily be the approach that is needed in Bujumbura, Managua or Tashkent. The Chief also pointed out that success will be derived sooner rather than later if the reorganization programs build on what is already in place that more or less functions and that makes maximum use of existing resources. "What is important is that the Fire Service to be assisted first become efficient utilizing with what is immediately available to them.", explained Triozzi. He went on to say that, "By keeping things simple and by using what exists and that works, firefighters will be working with what is familiar to them. Building on this foundation new techniques and equipment can then be slowly introduced over time. The goal is to render firefighters capable of putting out a fire safely. High tech and new toys are not the answer. Not in the begining." Another area vital to the development of a Fire Service are the functional priorities. That is, maintaining an evolution of events that are progressive that permits the Fire Service to function and grow in a natural way that enriches its capabilities. In Iraq the order of this progression should be to: First, render existing firefighters efficient with what is at their disposal Second, create an officer/management corps Third, create a staff of instructors Fourth, hire new recruits, introduce new equipment and techniques Chief Triozzi also expressed the importance of sticking to basic, traditional fire service roles with regard to training and the purchase of equipment in the early stages of reorganization. These responsibilities shoud be limited to: firefighting, basic rescue with hand tools, elementary hazmat and in the case of Iraq, Explosives and Ordinance Disposal (EOD), a tradition in the Iraqi Fire Service. Specialized units and high tech operations such as high angle rescue teams, fire service rescue divers, advanced hazmat units, heavy rescue and EMS etc. Can come much later- just as it did in the industrialized world. What is key is to have a Fire Service that functions and that puts the fire out safely. The firefighters must become proficient with the basics before moving forward. In this way the Fire Service will evolve progressively. The initiatives taken to assist them will be lasting, effective solutions rather than a "flash in the pan" response, which is only a facade that, in effect, squanders resources and keeps the fire service in a state no better off then it was before. COPYRIGHT 2005 Fire Rescue Development Program, NGO