Abstract
Introduction: One of the people to whom Polish firefighting owes its development was engineer Józef Tuliszkowski (1867-1939) who lived during the annexation period of Poland and in the interwar years, when the independence of the Polish state was reviving. It is the next article in the section "People involved in Firefighting" dedicated for biographies of deserving people who have contributed to firefighting. The profile of another, equally deserving individual associated with fire protection – LT Col (Retd) Władysław Pilawski was highlighted in the first issue of "BiTP. Safety & Fire Technique" in 2015. Engineer Józef Tuliszkowski was a professional and tireless activist in pursuit of improving the state of fire safety. He personified the best qualities of a fireman - professional leader, organizer and patriot, being a role model for present and future generations of officers. His long-term theoretical and practical achievements have a significant influence on present day shaping of tactics, techniques, training and research in the field of fire protection. He constantly strived to develop the fire service. He defined, among others, the fundamentals of technology and firefighting training, and created a cadre of fully qualified personnel, principles of which are applied in present day firefighting. His contribution as an author in the field of publishing is also noteworthy. His work enriched literature for the profession on issues concerning fighting fires, which, in many areas, are relevant today. His achievements, some 30 books, including a text consisting of seven volumes "Defence against fires,” which aroused interest beyond Polish borders and a pioneering textbook for firefighters “Firefighting” published in 1909. Engineer Józef Tuliszkowski’s activity as an author includes some 130 articles, published mainly in the “Fire Review” magazine and includes a well publicised project from the School of Firefighting, Warsaw, published in 1924 as a brochure. He shared his wide knowledge and experience at a variety of international meetings and conferences. In recognition of outstanding achievements in fire protection, the Scientific and Research Centre for Fire Protection – National Research Institute was named after Józef Tuliszkowski. The Centre’s mission is to conduct activities to ensure public safety in areas associated with: fire protection, crisis management, protection of the public and civil defence – ideas to which engineer Józef Tuliszkowski devoted his entire life.
Keywords: Polish firefighting, fire protection, firefighting literature