INTERNATIONAL FIREFIGHTERS’ DAY 2022: Needless to say, firefighters are the guardians of society, many of them have made innumerable sacrifices just for the sake of public safety and rescuing lives from tragic incidents. So, to honour their work, sacrifices, courage, and dedication every year, May 4 is celebrated as International Firefighters’ Day. The special day is marked to pay respect to those firefighting experts who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
Significance and History
On May 4, people wear a symbolic badge made from red and blue ribbons to pay their gratitude to all the martyred firefighters. For those who don’t know, both red and blue are the main elements of a firefighter’s work because red denotes fire and blue is symbolic of water.
Unfortunately, the International Firefighters’ Day originated after a tragic incident occurred in Linton town of Australia, on December 2, 1998. In the horrible incident, five firemen lost their lives, while trying to douse a wildfire.
Those five firefighters include Garry Vredeveldt, Chris Evans, Stuart Davidson, Jason Thomas, and Matthew Armstrong, who were a part of a strike team and had to rush to attend an SOS call, but sadly all five died battling the fire.
After the tragedy, on January 4, 1998, a proposal was sent to all the nations to honour the brave firemen and to pay respect to the ones who sacrificed their lives.
The other main aspect of the International Firefighters’ Day is to prevent such tragedies and express the need to improve intensive and thorough training in the near future. It is celebrated by not only wearing the red and blue ribbons but also donating money to the charity that supports the medical treatment and wellbeing of retired and former firefighters.
