A Quantitative Analysis and Improvement Plan for Fire Department Grading Criteria: A Case Study of Jeollanam-do

The current fire department grading system in Korea classifies stations based on criteria such as population served, the number of designated fire protection targets, and indices of structural risk. However, the system has been criticized for failing to sufficiently reflect the true demand for regional fire services. This study addresses these limitations by analyzing 22 fire departments in Jeollanam-do using quantitative indicators of demand. Through Delphi surveys, key indicators such as population, jurisdictional area, number of fire protection targets, and dispatch volume were identified and compared with existing grades. The analysis revealed that even departments such as Suncheon that ranked high across most indicators were assigned lower grades when special provisions were not applied. To resolve this, we propose a revised grading model that expands the current three-tier system to four levels and introduces a more realistic risk index. These findings provide foundational guidelines to reform the national allocation of firefighting personnel and contribute to improving the equity and efficiency of fire services.