Accessibility analysis of fire stations using geographical lnformation systems and remote sensing technologies: A case of Kaçkar Fire Station

The transportation time of the fire brigade, one of the institutions serving in emergencies, is critical in the response. By using Geographic Information System-based analyzes, which are among today's technologies, these systems are used for the most effective response in emergencies and have become an effective tool in solving various problems. In this study, emergency accessibility analysis was carried out through Geographic Information Systems. The KAÇKARBIR brigade is responsible for the Pazar, Ardeşen, and Fındıklı districts and has a fire station inside their borders to respond to emergencies. The municipalities in the research area established a local government organization to provide the fire department service. The presence of a single fire station inside the Black Sea region is crucial, as is an investigation of the accessibility performance of the fire department service offered there and the dearth of fire department accessibility studies conducted in the area. Network analysis is one type of analysis done on GIS. Through network analysis, it is carried out on network data consisting of linear geographic features represented by interconnected polylines, such as roads, rivers, communication and power lines. Network analysis, which is a network analysis application, was used within the scope of this study to analyze the accessibility and arrival time of vehicles on network data, especially for emergency accessibility. The data obtained as a result of the research conducted in the region present the transportation times in the study area. The Ardeşen district of Rize province, where the fire station is located, was seen as the center. According to the findings obtained as a result of the study, it was determined that approximately 1,1% (13 km²) of Rize province could be reached in 5 minutes, the most spatially accessible time interval was 10-15 minutes, and this time corresponded to 4,06% (48 km²) of the research area. In addition, it was observed that 1.1% of the study area was accessed within the first 5 minutes, 3,47% within 10 minutes, 7,53% within 15 minutes, 13,62% within 20 minutes, 24,45% within 25 minutes, 37,48% within 30 minutes and the remaining 62,52% in the area in more than 30 minutes. It is critical to develop hydrant and fire cabinet infrastructure in neighborhoods and villages where access time is high, to have vehicle materials for the first responders in the area, and to apply a volunteer firefighting system to the people living in that area.