History of the Service: Despite the fact that Rožaje is an urban organized settlement of an older date, only in 1958, under the authority of the Municipality of Rožaje, the Voluntary Fire Society was formed as an organized form of fire protection and a professional manager of the Society was appointed for the first time.
The then DVD-o had modest equipment, it had 30 members who volunteered from different work organizations on a voluntary basis, except for the manager who was professionally employed. This organization existed until the middle of 1978, when a big fire happened in the wood processing factory. Since then, by the Decision of the Rožaje District Council, the SIZ of Fire Protection was formed and two fire engines were supplied.
The "Fire Unit-Rožaje" was formed as part of the SIZ of PP protection with 8 employed firefighters, the former head of the fire department was appointed as Commander.
Pursuant to the "Law on Protection and Rescue" 2008 the Fire Department is abolished, and the Protection Service of the Municipality of Rožaje is established with expanded powers and responsibilities in relation to the Fire Department.
Protection service is, due to the specificity of the work, a special service, established by the Decision on the Organization and Mode of Operation of the Local Government Bodies of the Municipality of Rožaje.
The Protection Service represents an expert and professional organization of a humanitarian nature, which performs public activities of special national and local interest and importance.
Protection and rescue includes preventive-operational measures and actions that are undertaken before and after accidental-incidental situations, and if they occur, to be localized and liquidated with the aim of minimizing the consequences.
The protection service performs the following tasks:
- providing assistance to the vulnerable and victimized population;
- fire extinguishing and fire rescue;
- rescue from rubble, landslides and snow avalanches;
- rescue during floods, other weather disasters, ecological and other accidents on rivers and lakes;
- mountain rescue;
- pit rescue;
- rescue during traffic accidents;
- rescue during accidents and accidents in civil aviation;
- rescue during mining accidents, etc.
The service is located in the newly built fire station in Maršala Tita Street, in a building with an area of about 500 m2. The newly built facility has all the necessary facilities for the efficient functioning of the Service, which ensures the implementation of a quality work program carried out by qualified staff with professional members of the Protection Service.
The operative composition of the Protection Service consists of 17 enforcers together with the management staff, duty is performed in four shifts of 3 enforcers.
The vehicle fleet has been modernized with new fire-rescue vehicles, so that today the Service has four globally standardized vehicles: Combined - Rush vehicle (2005 year) Mercedes-Atego, Tanker (following vehicle) Mercedes-Benz Actros 2036AK 4×4 (2009), Tank truck for extinguishing forest fires Mercedes-Benz Unimog U-500 4×4 (2009),Technical vehicle Mercedes-Benz Unimog U-5000 4×4 (2009).
According to the service's ten-year statistics, the average annual number of interventions within the Service's jurisdiction is around 280 cases. Supervision over the legality and effectiveness of the work of the service is carried out by the President of the Municipality.
