Community-based fire brigades called "shobodan," composed of ordinary citizens, play an important role in firefighting and fire prevention. But the number of shobodan members has been declining. The Fire and Disaster Management Agency in January started a three-month campaign to encourage citizens to join shobodan fire brigades.
The number of shobodan members stood at 2,090,000 in 1952. By 1990 it declined to 996,700, and further fell to 893,000 by 2007. In contrast, the number of professional firefighters employed by local governments has increased from 27,270 in 1952 to 157,400 now. The 2,474 shobodan fire brigades throughout the country consist of 23,600 firefighting units. The average age of citizen firefighters is 38. About 70 percent of them have their own jobs, but the Firefighting Organization Law accords them the status of part-time special local public servants. Citizen firefighters play an important role in rescue and evacuation activities during storms, floods and earthquakes in addition to their work preventing fires and fighting them. They also help strengthen community bonds by visiting older people — couples as well as those living by themselves.
The decline in the number of citizen firefighters can be attributed to the graying of the population, the declining birthrate, the outflow of young people from the countryside to urban areas, and the change in the nation's industrial structure. Interestingly, despite the decrease in shobodan membership overall, the number of female shobodan members has increased from fewer than 5,000 in 1994 to 15,500 in 2007.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency is calling on public servants, workers of public organizations, and women to join shobodan. It should also strive to gain the understanding and cooperation of business enterprises so that they encourage employees to become citizen firefighters. Recruiting citizens to serve in capacities other than fighting fires is also an option.