Firefighters have reservations about the proposed construction law

Prague – The firefighters also have objections to the proposal of a new construction law, the paragraph wording of which entered the commenting process at the end of November. According to them, their position as the state fire supervision must not be fundamentally diminished, since fire safety, civil protection, the integrated rescue system, and crisis management are important for building safety. This was stated today by spokesman for the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic Rudolf Kramář to ČTK. The statement from the Ministry of Regional Development is being verified by ČTK.

The existing system, optimized for nearly 70 years, functions optimally according to the firefighters in this understanding and with functioning control mechanisms.

A clear example of the consequences that could occur if construction prevention regarding fire safety is neglected is, according to the firefighters' spokesman, the incident in Prešov on Friday, where gas exploded in a panel building. Firefighters warned that, according to the proposed construction law, fire safety officials would no longer voice fire safety concerns about buildings, as they have until now, but that instead people with a lack of practical and factual experience would do so.

In Prešov, ​​eight people likely lost their lives due to the gas explosion and subsequent fire. The head of the Prešov firefighters, Ján Goliáš, spoke of violations of regulations. "I will put it bluntly, the firefighters were not in agreement with the reconstruction of the entire apartment building. We did not agree with the construction modifications from 2017. Some regulations were violated there. This could have also caused the collapse of the staircase, through which we could not evacuate the interior,” he stated.

In the Czech Republic, according to Kramář, it is still the case that firefighters perform state fire supervision (SPD) for such buildings if construction changes, such as during a renovation, affect fire safety. Fire supervision includes a monitoring activity. However, according to the firefighters, the new construction law could suggest that there is no longer a need for control mechanisms, including fire safety for buildings. "The position of the SPD could thus be fundamentally diminished,” the firefighters' spokesman warned.

The proposal for the new construction law aims to speed up and simplify building approvals; it is currently in the commenting process, which ends on December 23. The law, which has many critics, is scheduled to take effect in 2021. However, according to critics, the law favors developers, undermines public interests such as fire safety and environmental protection, and opens up space for corruption.