Improvement of Standards for Establishing 119 Safety Center to Secure Golden Time

Abstract

Despite continuous efforts to secure the fire “golden time,” such as implementing an emergency vehicle pre-emption system and expanding the dispatch zone, the arrival rate of fire engines within the golden time in Korea averaged 68% nationwide as of 2019. In particular, Gyeonggi, Gangwon, and Gyeongbuk recorded less than half of arrivals in the golden time. Securing the golden time is directly related to fire extinguishing time and casualties, so efforts to shorten the dispatch time are being made; however, research on the standards for establishing fire stations is insufficient. Under the current law, 119 safety centers are established based on the population and area, so regional characteristics, such as use districts, land use patterns, and urban density, cannot be considered. The purpose of this study was to analyze quantitatively the influence of such factors on the arrival rate within the golden time through binary logistic regression analysis and to suggest directions for improving the current 119 safety center establishment standards. It was found that the arrival rate within the golden time is affected by land use patterns, and it was determined that 119 safety centers are currently somewhat concentrated in residential and commercial areas. In addition, the arrival rate within the golden time increases when local governments install an emergency vehicle pre-emption system. Finally, the arrival rate within the golden time was low in the case of fire on roads caused by traffic accidents and vehicle defects. In the future, if the spatial scope of analysis can be expanded nationwide and fire engine dispatch routes can be used, the arrival rate within the golden time can be increased by creating guidelines for establishing 119 safety centers considering the regional characteristics of each local government.