Tainan Fire Museum: Exploring History and Learning about Disaster Prevention

West Central Dist., Tainan City
Sightseeing
Located in Tainan's West Central District, the Fire Museum is easily accessible and close to attractions such as the Tainan Railway Station, Hayashi Department Store, the Museum of Literature, the Art Museum, and Wu Garden Arts Center, making it a great place for a day trip.

The museum's exhibition space is divided into 1st to 3rd floors, detailing the evolution of firefighting during the Qing Dynasty, Japanese colonial period, and post-war period, and displaying related artifacts and photographs. In addition, there are firefighter explanations, ambulance service introductions, special search team introductions and missions, disaster prevention knowledge classrooms, and VR earthquake rescue mission experiences. The latest event information can be found on the official website.

The museum provides information in Chinese, English, and Japanese, making it easy for tourists from all countries to understand the history of firefighting in Taiwan.


After passing the Tang De-zhang Memorial Park roundabout, you will surely be attracted by this historic white building, which is the Joint Office Building built during the Japanese colonial period. The high tower at the top of the building, completed in 1930, was called the "Hinomiyagura" (fire lookout tower) and was the tallest building in Tainan City at the time, playing an important role in monitoring fires in the mainly wooden-house city area.

The Joint Office Building is Taiwan's only fire museum and has profound historical significance for the development of firefighting in Tainan. Through a visit, you can not only understand the history of firefighting in Tainan but also appreciate the hard work of firefighters in maintaining the safety of citizens.

"Sumiyoshi Hidematsu" was an important figure who initiated modern standing fire service in Tainan during the Japanese colonial period. In 1919, Sumiyoshi Hidematsu founded Tainan's first volunteer fire brigade, the Tainan Fire Brigade. The Sumiyoshi couple funded many students and donated fire trucks and built fire towers, serving as leaders of the fire brigade for more than a decade.

[Sending the Fire God] In Taiwan, many folk beliefs have become important local activities. Tainan has rituals for welcoming and sending off the Fire God. "Fire" in folk beliefs represents light and purity, and many rituals use fire to purify before the ceremony. Fire also represents the progress of civilization and is respected and worshiped by humans. Pray for peace and good luck! Send off the plague at the end of the year, and pass through the fire to drive away evil and seek good luck.



This fire memory wall displays many historical items and photos, recording the fire heroes who gave their lives to save citizens, expressing heartfelt gratitude to the firefighters. Each photo and each person is full of stories, and after seeing them, you can't help but appreciate their contributions.


"Sun Cheng-chung" joined the volunteer fire brigade in March 1996. At 21:29 on the evening of June 26, 2003, a fire broke out at the Baosheng United Transportation Company warehouse (Jinche Beverage Storage Center) in Rende Township, Tainan County. Firefighters from Tainan County and City worked hard to extinguish the fire. After the fire was extinguished, while inspecting the fire scene, it was discovered that Sun Cheng-chung, 37, the third squad leader of the second team of the Nanmen Volunteer Fire Brigade who had come to support from Tainan City, had died in the fire.


The museum makes full use of space, and even the fire pole is vividly displayed in the stairwell. The fire pole, which could be slid down from the upper floor in an instant when a fire alarm sounded, is the oldest fire pole in Taiwan.


The 1964 <Mobile Fire Pump Truck> is generally used for large factory fire fighting, and the motor is started with electricity. When the power is insufficient, the rocker arm can be used to start the engine.


The museum details the rescue tools and fire fighting equipment used, and even the <Telescopic Video Audio Detector> used to find life when buildings collapse during an earthquake is on display.

Finally, two serious earthquakes and collapsed buildings are presented, the 1964 Baihe earthquake (6.3 on the Richter scale, the second deadliest earthquake in Taiwan after the 921 earthquake) and the 2016 Meinong earthquake (6.6 on the Richter scale, the largest intensity was 7 in Xinhua, Tainan City, which caused the most deaths and injuries from a single building collapse in Taiwanese history).

"Fire Museum" (Former Tainan Joint Office / Fire History Museum / Disaster Prevention Education Center)
Address: No. 2-1, Zhongzheng Road, West Central District, Tainan City
Phone: 06-2975119#2202
Opening hours: Closed on Mondays, Tuesday to Sunday 09:00~18:00
Fee information: Free
Published in 2021