Content uploaded by Ameer Hadi M. Ali
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Ameer Hadi M. Ali on Apr 15, 2020
Content may be subject to copyright.
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 936 editor@iaeme.com
International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology (IJCIET)
Volume 9, Issue 7, July 2018, pp. 936–947, Article ID: IJCIET_09_07_098
Available online at http://www.iaeme.com/ijciet/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=9&IType=7
ISSN Print: 0976-6308 and ISSN Online: 0976-6316
© IAEME Publication Scopus Indexed
ASSESSMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE
SPATIAL COVERAGE OF FIRE SERVICE IN
NASIRIYAH CITY BY USING GEOGRAPHIC
INFORMATION SYSTEMS (GIS)
Murtadhs S. Satchet
Assistant Instructor, Civil Engineering Department, University of Thi-Qar, Iraq
Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali
Assistant Instructor, Civil Engineering Department, University of Thi-Qar, Iraq
Yousif H. Khalaf
Instructor, Department of Surveying Engineering, University of Baghdad, Iraq
Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas
Surveying Engineers, Iraqi Engineers Syndicate, Iraq
ABSTRACT
The rapid increment in population growth and in the urban area of cities
necessitates the evaluation of the fire service within cities from time to time as it is
concerned with the protection of the population and their private property and the
protection of state property. The success of fire service depends mainly on the speed of
the fire truck reaching the scene and the performance on field to reduce losses to a
minimum ratio. The objective of study is utilizing the applications of GIS to assess the
efficiency of spatial coverage of the fire service in Nasiriyah city and spelling out the
necessary measures to increase coverage at the short and long term. The coverage is
first evaluated according to the service ranges currently applied by the government
departments responsible for the fire service. The obtained results are compared to the
coverage based on service radius .The study suggests the service polygon method to
determine areas where the fire service can reach in (4 minutes) or less. The main
conclusions of the study is that the assessment of the coverage using a radius of
service equal to (2.5 km) corresponds to the characteristics of the road network in the
study area, but the findings of coverage using the suggested service polygon method is
more accurate and closer to reality. The number of fire stations available within the
area of study is sufficient at the current time, but poor distribution has provided
typical coverage for only 60% of the areas in need of fire service.
Key words: GIS, Fire station, Coverage range, Service radius, Service polygon.
Murtadhs S. Satchet, Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali, Yousif H. Khalaf, Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 937 editor@iaeme.com
Cite this Article: Murtadhs S. Satchet, Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali, Yousif H. Khalaf,
Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas, Assessment And Development of the Spatial
Coverage of Fire Service in Nasiriyah City by Using Geographic Information Systems
(GIS), International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 9(7), 2018, pp.
936–947.
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=9&IType=7
TERMINOLOGY
Service Range (Coverage Range): the boundary of a certain area served by one or several fire
stations, which might be of a regular or irregular shape. Coverage range is determined by
different standards according to the characteristics of cities.
Service Radius: is the value of the coverage range radius for a full circle.
Response Time: the time consumed by a fire truck to travel from the fire station to the scene
(Wheel start to wheel stop) [1].
Fire Path: The route taken by the fire truck on the road network from the fire station to the
scene.
1. INTRODUCTION
The distribution of firefighting centers requires comprehension of a set of factors affecting
their performance and level of efficiency such as the road network, the maximum speed, the
breadth and size of roads and other characteristics that influence the movement of fire trucks.
The land uses and the distribution of population should be well defined so that fire stations
can be allocated in accordance with the characteristics and size of these spatial variables. The
propagation of the fire station sites can be efficiently planned by aid of the latest technologies,
like Geographic Information Systems (GIS), which is characterized by its ability to record and
store all geographical variables that affect the service required and to be processed and
analyzed statistically and spatially to determine the best fire station sites [2-4].
By reviewing the previous related studies, a study conducted to analyze the planning
characteristics of the distribution of fire stations in Dammam by concentrating on the distance
between the centers, the number of population served and the time needed to reach the fire.
The study found that the distribution of firefighting centers in Dammam with a concentrated
pattern in the city center closely to the high population density. The study suggested
redistributing the firefighting centers in different places of the city [5]. While in Saudi Arabia,
there was is a study showed the deficiency of planning in the distribution and establishment of
civil defense centers by observing the response time, which was considerably long (10 - 18)
minutes [6]. In another study for the spatial analysis of the distribution of fire extinguishing
services in AL-Mansoura city using geographic information systems (GIS). The study
revealed that the propagation of fire extinguishing sites in AL-Mansoura city was harmonious
but did not supply equal service in all regions of the study area [7], and there are two similar
studies in Riyadh and Makkah [8,9]. For assessing the distribution efficiency of emergency
services in Makkah based on the response time and a service radius of (2 km) as a local
standard, there was a study suggested the use of spatial information systems to reduce
response time to a large extent [10]. At the same year, the US environmental research institute
[11] defined the abilities of GIS in supporting the planning operations carried out for
emergency situations and its importance in determining the spatial distribution of firefighting
centers. The study adopted the standard of the response time to determine the positions of
firefighting centers.
Assessment And Development of the Spatial Coverage of Fire Service in Nasiriyah City by Using
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 938 editor@iaeme.com
At local level, several researches were conducted in this field. In Mosul city, the
efficiency of the spatial distribution of fire stations had been examined according to local and
international standards. The study revealed that there are large areas of the city that are not
covered by the fire service and at the same time there is an overlap in the service area in other
parts of the city. The study suggested a service radius of (2.3 km) and a response time of (4
minutes) [1]. Another study was conducted in the same city, discussed the use of geographic
information systems in determining the current and ideal range of fire stations in the city. The
study showed that the application of local standards in determining the number of fire stations
is not realistic and the recommendations were to set a service radius of (3 km) and a response
time of (2 minutes) per (1 km) [12].
In this paper, Nasiriyah city was selected as a study area. Nasiriyah city, the center of Thi-
Qar governorate, is located in the southeast of Iraq on the Euphrates River. It is the fourth
largest populated city after Baghdad, Basra and Mosul. The Euphrates River divides the city
into two parts, a northern part called Al-Jazeera side and a southern one called Al-Shamiyah
side (Figure 1). The area of the municipal borders of Nasiriyah city is (184 km2) of which (98
km2) barren land and (86 km2) distributed to many sectors (residential, industrial and
orchards) which need the fire service. There are five fire stations in Nasiriyah city, which are
divided on the two parts of the city: Sumer, Rtal, Al-Nu'man, Al-Shamoukh, and Ur . The first
three stations are located in Al-Jazeera side, while the fourth and fifth stations are located in
Al-Shamiyah side [13].
Figure 1 A map shows study area location and the distribution of the existed five fire stations
According to the Iraqi urban housing standards, a fire station should be available for each
neighborhood, or for each 110 hectares area of the city, or for every 12,000 inhabitants [14].
When applying the standard of residential neighborhood, the study area needs 57 fire stations
with a total of 57 residential neighborhoods and this number is very large and unrealistic,
whereas applying the standard of area, the total area which need the fire service within study
area is 8600 hectares (86 km2) which requires more than 78 fire stations and this number is
also large and impractical. However, by exploiting the population standard, the population of
Nasiriyah city is 455,700 according to 2010 census [15] and by applying the equation (1)
below (the formula for computing the population growth rate), the current population (for 2018)
can be estimated for Nasiriyah city as follow:
Murtadhs S. Satchet, Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali, Yousif H. Khalaf, Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 939 editor@iaeme.com
(1)
Where:
PT: The population's approximate number in the study year (2018).
Po: The population's actual number in the latest census year (2010).
r: The population growth rate.
n: Number of years between PT and Po
By adopting the expected population growth rate (2.7%) for the years after the previous
census of Iraq and especially Nasiriyah city (Source: Census of the population, buildings, and
families in 2010: The Central Bureau of Statistics–Ministry of Planning), Po = 563,953.
Thus, the number of the fire stations should be provided in the city for year 2018 is 47,
and this number is also large. On the other hand, the spatial coverage criteria that are
mentioned in Iraqi standards, assume a response time of (10 minutes), and a service radius
(1.2 km) but these standards are contradictory since they specify a small radius and suggest a
large arrival time. These results assure the unreliability of such local standards, which has
been confirmed by several studies and research [1,12].
2. METHODOLOGY
After the collection of land cover data and road network for the study area and the spatial
identification of the sites of the fire stations and the service ranges currently applied, the geo-
database for the fire service was built. The methodology of assessing the spatial coverage of
the fire service has passed through several steps (Figure 2) as follows:
Figure 2 Methodological framework for assessing the spatial coverage of the fire service
2.1. Assessment of Current Coverage Ranges
The coverage ranges of fire stations which currently applied in the study area by government
agencies responsible for civil defense are based on the distribution of residential
neighborhoods of the city to fire stations, without paying attention to the extent to which
response time has been achieved. In order to evaluate the efficiency of those ranges, the tools
of ArcGIS-10.5 software were used to track and measure the lengths of the fire paths that the
Assessment And Development of the Spatial Coverage of Fire Service in Nasiriyah City by Using
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 940 editor@iaeme.com
fire truck can drive in different directions through the city road network from the fire station
to the currently coverage limits (Figure 3).
Figure 3 The possible fire paths to the limits of current coverage range
2.2. Coverage Based on Service Radius
Many studies in evaluating the level of service of fire stations depend on the service radius of
each station through the distribution of the station's activity according to a radius specifying
the area covered by the fire service [1,12]. The value of this service radius relies on several
factors, the most important of which are the nature of the area, the capacity of the roads, and
the paths of fire truck and its speed. All these factors affect the time of arrival to the accident
area [16]. In order to determine the appropriate radius of service for the study area, a response
time of (4 minutes) was adopted and (50km/h) to the speed of the fire truck [1,5]. Thus, the
distance travelled by the fire truck during the (4 minutes), equals (3.34 km) which forms the
winding path of the fire truck on the road networks starting from the fire station to the
accident site. Winding pathways (3.34 km) in length with variant directions, have been
delineated in ArcGIS, then the displacements of these paths are found to estimate the service
radius of current fire stations (Figure 4).
2.3. Coverage Based on the Service Polygon
By utilizing the existing network of roads in the study area and the sites of the five fire
stations, the study proposed the principle of service polygon. The service polygon is produced
by connecting the ends of the paths travelled by the fire truck in different directions from the
fire station at a distance of (3.34 km) (equivalent to 4 minutes response time) or less at the
ends of the available road network (Figure 5). This polygon provides more practical coverage
of areas that a fire truck can reach through the city's road network and consequently, it gives
more precise and realistic results in calculating the coverage area. Also, this polygon forms a
unified coverage area for all fire stations available in the city, in other words, any fire accident
that is expected to occur inside this polygon has a distance of less than or equal to (3.34 km)
from any of the available fire stations, therefore, the service polygon deals with the city as a
one unit.
Murtadhs S. Satchet, Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali, Yousif H. Khalaf, Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 941 editor@iaeme.com
Figure 4 Shows the method applied to compute the service radius
Figure 5 Shows how to build the service polygon
3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
The assessment results of coverage ranges currently applied in the study area showed there
are some extreme areas far from the fire stations long by distance which consume more than
(4 minutes) to be arrived and other areas which are never reachable due to the lack of
connectivity with the city transport network. For example, the coverage of Al-Shamoukh fire
station extends to areas away from the fire station by more than (5 km) and may reach to more
than (7.5 km) and the coverage limits of Al-Nu'man Fire station extends to a distance of (10
km) and so is the case for the remaining coverage ranges currently applied (Figure 6). The
current fire service also showed that firefighting centers are not in the middle of their
coverage; there may be a fire accident close to a fire station, but it is within the scope of
another fire station, which is more distant from the scene and therefore takes longer to reach
the site which leads to further losses.
The current distribution of fire stations and their coverage ranges is limited to providing
an ideal service for the entire study area, particularly with the expansion of urban area in the
city, which will generate pressure on the fire stations and therefore the service provided will
be less efficient over time.
Assessment And Development of the Spatial Coverage of Fire Service in Nasiriyah City by Using
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 942 editor@iaeme.com
Figure 6 Lengths of fire paths according to current coverage ranges
The coverage computations using the service radius were applied to the five fire stations
within the study area and the table (1) shows the values of the service radius of each of them
and its notable that the value of (2.5 km) represents the radius average of the fire service that
coincides to the characteristics of the area and will be dependent on the subsequent
calculations of this study.
Table 1 The service radius of each fire station
NO
Fire stations
Service Radius (km)
1
Al-Shamoukh
2.500
2
Ur
2.480
3
Rtal
2.570
4
Sumer
2.580
5
Al-Nu'man
2.330
Radius average
2.452 km ≈ 2.50 km
The area of the single coverage circle with a radius of (2.5 km) equals (19.6 km2). Thus,
the theoretical total of five coverage circles is (98 km2). However, the practical results for the
(2.5 km) service radius using ArcGIS-10.5 software (Figure 7) indicate the following:
Total area of coverage is (58.2 km2) due to overlap in the coverage ranges resulting from the
convergence of the fire stations sites.
The overlap areas equal to (28.4 km2) or 49% of the total coverage area.
Murtadhs S. Satchet, Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali, Yousif H. Khalaf, Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 943 editor@iaeme.com
The total coverage area serves 62% of the areas that currently need fire service within the
study area.
The total coverage area includes 8% of the barren areas.
The five fire stations are adequate for standard coverage at present but lack the appropriate
allocation.
Figure 7 Coverage using service radius
When applying the service polygon proposed by the study on the current sites of the fire
stations (Figure 8), the following observations may be made:
The total coverage area within the boundary of the polygon is (46.4 km2) which constitutes
about 54% of the areas that need fire service at the moment.
All areas inside the polygon are connected to the city road network so fire trucks can reach
anywhere in less than or equal to (4 minutes).
Polygon service does not cover barren areas.
The results of the above methods show that the coverage of the polygon service (54%) is
less than coverage using the service radius (62%). This is due to the fact that the latter
includes in its coverage some barren areas and those not connected to the road network, and
this indicates that the coverage of the polygon service is more accurate and closer to reality. In
both cases, however, more than 40% of the city's urban areas need more than (4 minutes) of
response time. From this we conclude that the selection of the current fire station sites was not
according to the correct criteria served, and in order to increase the efficiency of these centers,
the positions of some of them should be changed to reduce the overlap and increase the served
areas.
Assessment And Development of the Spatial Coverage of Fire Service in Nasiriyah City by Using
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 944 editor@iaeme.com
Figure 8 Coverage using service polygon
4. SOLUTIONS
In the immediate term, the following manipulations can be carried out for the purpose of
increasing the efficiency of the fire service provided within the study area:
Moving the site of Al-Shamoukh fire station from the current position in the (Al-Shamoukh
neighborhood) to an distance of 1800 m south-east along the highway to the new site proposed
by the study at the beginning of Al-Iskan neighborhood.
Relocating the site of Rtal fire station (at Al-Mualemeen neighborhood) by moving a distance
of 3550 m northward along the highway to the new location near the industrial neighborhood.
Distributing three patrols of fire trucks in the eastern and western parts of the city with an
agricultural nature, especially in the summer season, which is full of forest fires.
By reconstructing the service polygon according to the above treatments (Figure 9), the
total area of coverage was (78.5 km2), which constitutes about 91% of the areas that currently
need the fire service. In the long term, the study area requires at least five new fire stations to
be added to the old five centers so that they can provide enough coverage for all the land
within the basic design of (184 km2).
Murtadhs S. Satchet, Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali, Yousif H. Khalaf, Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 945 editor@iaeme.com
Figure 9 Service polygon coverage after conducted the proposed manipulations
5. CONCLUSIONS
The five fire stations are adequate for standard coverage at present but lack the appropriate
distribution.
The coverage range of the fire service currently applied does not meet the standard response
time (4 minutes).
A service radius of (2.5 km) was found to be compatible with the characteristics of the road
network in the study area (using a speed of 50 km/h for the fire truck and 4 minutes response
time).
The proposed service polygon is more accurate and closer to reality in determining the
standard coverage areas.
There are 40% of areas requiring fire service within the study area fall outside the standard
coverage.
The efficiency of the fire service can be increased by changing the location of Al-Shamoukh
and Al-Rtal fire stations and adding three fire patrols in the east and west of the study area.
Assessment And Development of the Spatial Coverage of Fire Service in Nasiriyah City by Using
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 946 editor@iaeme.com
In the long term, the study area needs at least (5) additional stations to cover the municipal
borders area.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author extends special thanks Thi-Qar University for providing the necessary instruments
and software to complete this study. In addition, the following Iraqi government offices are
gratefully acknowledged for their data support:
Directorate of Nasiriyah Civil Defence, Ministry of Interior, Iraq.
Directorate of Nasiriyah Municipality, Ministry of Municipalities, Iraq.
The Central Bureau of Statistics, Ministry of Planning, Iraq.
REFERENCES
[1] Alfakhry, A., Ali, T. and Matloub, F., "The Efficiency of the Spatial Distribution of Civil
Defense Stations in Mosul City", Al-Rafidain Engineering Journal, Vol. 18, No. 6, (2010),
61-80.
[2] Sen, A., Onden, I., Gokgoz, T. and Sen, C., "A GIS Approach to Fire Station Location
Selection", Retrieved from www. academin. edu on 2nd March (2013).
[3] Habibi, K., Lotfi, S. and Koohsari, M., "Spatial Analysis of Urban Fire Station Location
by Integrating AHP Model and IO Logic Using GIS - A Case Study of Zone 6 of
Tehran", Journal of Applied Science, Vol. 8, No. 19, (2008), 3302-3315.
[4] Lai, W., Han-lun, L., Qi, L., Jing-yi, C. and Yi-jiao, C., "Study and Implementation of
Fire Sites Planning Based on GIS and AHP", The 5th Conference on Performance-based
Fire and Fire Protection Engineering, No. 11, (2011), 486–495.
[5] Jarallah, A., "The Planning Properties for Distribution of Fire Department Centers in the
City of Dammam", Al’amn Juornal, Vol. 11, (1995), 299–262.
[6] Shawqi, M. and Al-Qahtani, A., "Pattern of Geographical Distribution of Civil Defense
Centers and its Impact on the Speed of Dealing with Emergencies - Applied Study on
Riyadh City", Master Thesis, Naif Arab University for Security Sciences, (2004).
[7] Alkhawaja, S., "Analysing the Spatial Distribution of Fire Service in Mansoura Using
Geographical Information Systems (GIS)", Faculty of Arts, Alexandria University, 6th
Symposium-Human and Environment where to?, P. 87, (2004).
[8] Al-Zair, N., "Geographical Evaluation of the Distribution of Civil Defense Centers in
Riyadh City: a Study in the Geography of Services", Department of Geography - Faculty
of Arts - King Saud University.
[9] Mohammed, B. and Al-Qurashi, A., "Spatial Distribution of Fire Accidents in the City of
Mecca with a Statement of the Importance of the Use of GIS in Monitoring the Safety of
Enterprises", Master Thesis in Police Sciences, Naif Arab University for Security
Sciences, (2005).
[10] Al-Joufi, M., "The Use of Geographic Information Systems in the Study of the
Distribution of Civil Defense Centers in Makkah", Faculty of Environmental Designs,
Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia, (2007).
[11] Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI), “GIS for Fire Station Locations and
Response Protocol,” white paper, (January 2007), 1–3, 14–27.
[12] Adoo, M., "Determine the Current and Optimum Service Area of Civil Defense Centers in
Mosul City Using Geographic Information Systems", Journal of Education and Science,
Vol. 20, No. 1, (2013), 365-382.
Murtadhs S. Satchet, Ameer H. Muhammad-Ali, Yousif H. Khalaf, Abbas S. Jaber and Sajad K. Wanas
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/index.asp 947 editor@iaeme.com
[13] Iraqi Ministry of Municipalities - Directorate of Urban Planning in Thi-Qar, "Geo-
database of Nasiriyah Master Plan", (2010).
[14] Iraqi Ministry of Construction and Housing - Public Authority for Housing, "Urban
Housing Standards Brochure", (2010).
[15] Iraqi Ministry of Planning - Central Organization for Statistics, "Population, Buildings and
Household Survey for 2010".
[16] Liu, N., Huang, B. and Chandramouli, M., "Optimal Siting of Fire Stations Using GIS
and ANT Algorithm", Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, Vol. 20, No. 5, (2006),
361-369.
