Functions of the Disaster Management and Fire & Rescue Services | Western Cape Government

Functions of the Disaster Management and Fire & Rescue Services

(Western Cape Government)

The Disaster Management and Fire & Rescue Services Chief Directorate is responsible for facilitating disaster management and coordinating fire and rescue services throughout the Western Cape Province.

Functions:

  • To establish and maintain institutional disaster management capacity and to implement effective risk reduction activities.
  • To prepare for and respond to disasters and coordinate disaster recovery.
  • To coordinate the provincial fire brigade function and capacitate municipalities.

The Chief Directorate is accommodated within the Provincial Disaster Management Center (PDMC), which is situated on the premises of Tygerberg Hospital, Bellville.

The Chief Directorate is divided into two Directorates:

  1. Disaster Risk Reduction.
  2. Disaster Operations.

The Chief Directorate also has a separate Unit focussing on Fire & Rescue Services, which is also situated within the same building (PDMC).

The PDMC coordinates and chair a quarterly Provincial Disaster Management Advisory Forum where all relevant stakeholders (including National, as well as Provincial Departments; District Municipalities, in particular the District Disaster Management Centers; B-Municipalities; NGOs; SOEs; UNHCR; National Defence Force; SAPS; City of Cape Town; SA Weather Services) gather to discuss pertinent matters relevant to disaster management.

PDMC liaises closely with the National Disaster Management Center (NDMC) based in Pretoria.

The content on this page was last updated on 23 July 2015