Reducing forest fire risks with new warning sign
Are you aware that forest fires are vey often caused by inappropriate human behaviour? Therefore, it is particularly important to provide information on the dangers on the ground to a broader public.
New forest fire warning sign for free use
On the initiative of the project Forest Fire - Climate - Resilience (WKR), coordinated by EFI, a new forest fire warning sign has been developed to draw attention to the danger of forest fires in Germany. Using a QR code on the signs, forest visitors can access the current forest fire hazard indices (WBI) of the German Weather Service (DWD) via smartphone and find out about the current hazard potential or fire risk.
The project to develop the forest fire warning sign brought together stakeholders from fire service, forestry, nature conservation, forest education and forest fire insurances with experts from the fields of graphic design and communication. The DWD supports the project with a dedicated website Wetter und Klima - Deutscher Wetterdienst - Leistungen - Waldbrandgefahrenindex (dwd.de). In the future and in cooperation with forestry authorities, this website can be expanded into several languages, and further content can be added if required.
Content of the new forest fire warning sign
The main message of the sign is to prevent forest fires by acting responsibly. To this end, specific instructions are given on behaviour in forests and meadows. Three pictograms indicate the most common forest fire triggers:
- No open fires
- Do not throw away cigarettes
- Do not park over dry grass
More info (in German) here
