Wildfire Suppression Elevated from "Fire Service Support Activities" to "Firefighting Activities"; Special Training for 1,400 Commanders Nationwide

As large wildfires grow more complex and spread across wider areas, wildfire suppression is being elevated to “firefighting activities,” a core responsibility of the fire service. In response, extensive capacity-building training will be held for fire commanders from across the country.

Firefighters engage in wildfire suppression operations. National Fire Agency.

The National Fire Agency will hold special nationwide training on wildfire response for fire commanders from Nov. 16 to 20, a five-day program for approximately 1,400 participants.

The training was organized in response to institutional changes under an amendment to the Framework Act on Fire Services, which shifts the legal status of wildfire suppression from the auxiliary “fire service support activities” to “firefighting activities,” a core responsibility of the fire service. It focuses on redefining the fire service’s role in preventing wildfires, responding in their early stages, preventing their spread and protecting residents by treating wildfires not simply as forest fires but as complex disasters that threaten lives, communities and major infrastructure.

Approximately 1,400 key personnel involved in frontline wildfire response will attend, including officials from the National Fire Agency, heads of fire headquarters in cities and provinces nationwide, fire station chiefs, field response team leaders, and staff from comprehensive situation rooms and special response teams.

The training will be held in five sessions at the Central Fire Service Academy and the National Tax Service auditorium. To prevent gaps in regional field command during the training period, the National Fire Agency plans to stagger the attendance schedules of city and provincial fire headquarters chiefs and other participants.

The curriculum consists of four core areas: ▲the direction of the comprehensive plan for wildfire safety and firefighting ▲wildfire response cases and lessons in field command ▲wildfire command systems and inter-agency cooperation ▲wildfire characteristics and suppression tactics.

Ju Yeongguk, director of the 119 Response Bureau at the National Fire Agency, will first outline the direction of the comprehensive plan and discuss the need for a policy shift. Lee Kangwoo, chief of the Hongcheon Fire Station in Gangwon Province, and Choi Wonik, director of the Disaster Response Division at the Gyeongbuk Fire Headquarters, will share lessons in field command drawn from their experience responding to major wildfires and mobilizing firefighting resources.

Lee Yongkwon, director general for forest disaster control at the Korea Forest Service, will then lecture on wildfire command systems, the division of responsibilities between fire and forest authorities, and joint response measures. Hwang Jeongseok, chairman of the Korea Urban Wildfire Response Association, will provide instruction on how terrain and weather conditions affect wildfire spread, as well as suppression tactics tailored to conditions in the field.

In preparation for the amended Framework Act on Fire Services taking effect in April 2027, the National Fire Agency plans to comprehensively review policy tasks across areas including personnel, equipment, tactics and safety management, and gradually improve its field-centered response system.

National Fire Agency Commissioner Choi Yongcheol said, “This special training is an important starting point for changing fire commanders’ perceptions of wildfire response and building field command capabilities suited to the changing disaster environment.” He added, “We will work closely with relevant agencies to advance the wildfire response system and devote all our capabilities to protecting the lives and property of the public.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.