Vietnam: Who is the fire-fighting commander when a fire occurs?

Vietnam: Who is the fire-fighting commander when a fire occurs? (Internet image) 

Regarding this issue, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

1. Who is the fire-fighting commander when a fire occurs?

Specifically, Article 37 of the Law on fire prevention and fighting 2001 (amended 2013) stipulates the fire-fighting commander as follows:

- Upon occurrence of fire, the person having the highest position of police unit of fire prevention and fighting shall be present at the scene of the fire is the fire-fighting commander.

- Where the fire prevention and fighting police force has not arrived yet at places where fires break out, the fire-fighting commander is stipulated as follows:

+ If a fire occurs at an establishment, its head shall be the fire-fighting commander; in case of his/her absence, the head of the grassroots fire brigade or the authorized person shall be the fire-fighting commander;

+ If a fire occurs at a village, the chief thereof shall be the fire-fighting commander; in case of his/her absence, the head of the civil defense group or the authorized person shall be the fire-fighting commander;

+ If a motorized vehicle being in circulation is on fire, the commander or owner thereof shall be the fire-fighting commander; in case of such person’s absence, the means operator shall be the fire-fighting commander;

+ In case of a forest fire, if the forest owner is an agency or organization, the head thereof or an authorized person shall be the fire-fighting commander while the chief of the village or hamlet where the fire occurs shall have to participate in commanding the fire fighting; if the forest owner is a household or individual, the chief of the village or hamlet or the authorized person shall be the fire-fighting commander.

The head of the forest ranger unit or the authorized person at the place where the fire occurs shall have to take part in commanding the fire fighting;

+ The heads of agencies or organizations, the presidents of the commune/ward/township (commune-level for short) or higher-level People’s Committees, who are present at the fire, shall direct and command the fire-fighting.

2. Rights and responsibilities of fire-fighting commanders in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 38 of the Law on fire prevention and fighting 2001, the rights and responsibilities of fire-fighting commanders are prescribed as follows:

- Fire-fighting commanders of the fire prevention and fighting police shall have the following rights:

+ To immediately mobilize personnel and means of fire prevention and fighting forces for fire fighting;

+ To decide the fire-fighting area and measures; and use the surrounding terrain and natural objects for fire fighting;

+ To ban irrelevant people and means from travelling across the fire-fighting area; mobilize people, means and properties of agencies, organizations, households and individuals for fire fighting;

+ To decide the dismantlement of houses, projects and obstacles as well as removal of properties in emergency cases so as to rescue people and prevent big fires, which may cause serious damage.

- Fire-fighting commanders being the heads of agencies, organizations and presidents of the commune- or higher-level People’s Committees are entitled to exercise the rights defined in Clause 1 of Article 38 of the Law on fire prevention and fighting 2001 within the areas under their respective management

Fire-fighting defined prescribed at Points a, b, c and d, Clause 2, Article 37 of of the Law on fire prevention and fighting 2001 may, within the areas under their respective management, exercise the rights provided for at Points a and b, Clause 1 of Article 38 of the Law on fire prevention and fighting 2001.

- All people shall have to obey orders of fire-fighting commanders. Fire-fighting commanders shall be held responsible before law for their decisions.

3. Regulations on priority and ensuring of priority rights for people and means participating in fire fighting in Vietnam

According to Article 36 of the Law on fire prevention and fighting 2001, regulations on priority and ensuring of priority rights for people and means participating in fire fighting are as follows:

- People mobilized to perform fire-fighting task shall be given priority to travel by various transport means.

- Forces and means, while mobilized for fire fighting, shall enjoy the following priority rights:

+ Forces and means of the fire prevention and fighting police shall be allowed to use priority sirens, lights, banners and other special signals; and given priority on traffic roads as prescribed by law;

+ Other forces and means, when mobilized for fire-fighting, shall enjoy priority rights as provided for at Point a of Clause 2 of Article 36 of the Law on fire prevention and fighting 2001 within the fire- fighting area.

- People and means participating in traffic, when realizing the priority siren, light and/or banner signals of the means performing fire-fighting task shall have to quickly give way to the latter.

4. The traffic police force and other forces, when performing the task of maintaining traffic order, shall have to ensure that the fire-fighting forces and means travel as fast as possible.

Ho Quoc Tuan

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