Fire-fighting squads lack essential equipment
Press Release – November 23, 2007
Auditors from the Supreme Audit Office (SAO) focused on management of the state property within the jurisdiction of the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic (FRS CR) and the disposing of the automobile and special mobile technologies (AT).
The audited period extended from 2005 to 2006, including associated data from the previous time and till the end of the audit. The audited body was the Ministry of Interior – the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic (FRS CR), and regional fire rescue squads in Ústí nad Labem, Plzeň, Southern Bohemia, Southern Moravia, and in Olomouc.
The regional fire-fighting squads lack a lot of essential fire-fighting equipment (determined by the ordinance of the organization and activities of the fire-fighting squads) that would be worth CZK 400 million. “In particular, the squads lack cistern pumping appliances, automobile cranes, automobile extension ladders, lifting platforms, containers, and special technology for elimination of dangerous substances and actions during incidents of traffic,“ said František Dohnal, president of the SAO.
“About half of the fire-fighting technology in FRS CR became obsolete, most of the aged pieces being cistern pumping appliances, automobile extension ladders, and lifting platforms. In 2005 and 2006, 275 pieces of useless equipment were discarded and mostly given up to the town volunteer fire companies,“ said Dohnal.
Some regional fire-fighting squads booked insufficiently about their properties and inventory. For example, an explicit product name was inserted within the technical specification of a public order or only one contestant was appealed for a public order competition. Within the general directorate, the auditors controlled 26 public orders of AT worth over CZK 45 million. Within the regional squads, 113 public orders (worth altogether over CZK 278 million) were audited.
The auditing operation was included in the 2007 Audit Plan of the SAO under No. 07/01. Ladislav Zeman, Member of the SAO, controlled the operation and drew up the audit report as well.
Radka Burketová
Press Speaker
Supreme Audit Office