The State Will Pay the Damage Sustained by Those Going to Fight the Fire

Details of the Regulation

The regulation provides a comprehensive legal framework for processes concerning the prevention of forest fires, risk reduction, fire preparedness, firefighting and post-fire rehabilitation. Through the regulation, the duties and responsibilities of the General Directorate of Forestry, AFAD, local administrative superiors, law enforcement forces, municipalities, the Ministry of National Education, civil society organizations and volunteers in firefighting processes have been clarified. During periods of high meteorological risk, local administrative superiors are granted authority to prohibit access to forests, while the precautionary measures that all actors, ranging from beekeepers and combine harvester operators to agricultural landowners and accommodation facility operators, must take have been determined.

The use of technology and the deployment of aircraft in firefighting operations constitute key elements. It is envisaged that unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) control centers will be established and that fire-monitoring towers and technological communication infrastructure will be strengthened. Flight safety, tracking devices and coordination principles have been established for foreign or private aircraft participating in firefighting operations; aircraft in the OGM inventory may be assigned to fires outside forests, provided that their rental and flight costs are covered. Furthermore, law enforcement forces have been granted immediate authority to intercept unauthorized unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) that may endanger flight safety in the fire zone.

Direct intervention, parallel methods and the high-risk “backburning” technique have been defined among the intervention methods; it has been ruled that backburning may be carried out only under the responsibility of the fire commander or a fire expert to be assigned. During intervention, personnel on duty and certified volunteers are required to use personal protective equipment, while the costs of meals and accommodation are covered by the forest administration and vehicles and equipment damaged in the fire are compensated. It has been clarified that officials and volunteers who die, are injured or are permanently disabled during firefighting operations may benefit from the provisions of the Nakdi Tazminat ve Aylık Bağlanması Hakkında Kanun.