Museums

Uralsk repeatedly burned to the ground and was restored from the ashes. In the narrow streets, wooden houses burned down in a matter of minutes, and people were left to watch in horror as the fire left them homeless. It is no accident that the first fire service in Kazakhstan was created in Uralsk.

The XVIII century was lit up in the history of Uralsk by large fires. The most terrible was the Shilikhinsky fire. Then there was almost nothing left of the town. Subsequently, the Uralians divided their lives into two halves – the one that was before the fire, and after it.

The writer Joasaph Zheleznov in the story “Shilikhin fire” wrote that the terrible fire got its name from the name of the sorceress Shilikha, who kept the city in fear. When she was about to die, her hut burst into blue flames. The fire spread to other houses, and it was impossible to stop it. Here is how the historian Akhil Karpov described this event: "On August 10, 1751, at 9 o'clock in the morning, the bells of the churches sounded the alarm. The Cossacks ran out of the vein (dwelling), they see-the old bases at the steppe side, near the city wall, are burning up with a big flame. The wind rips everything, tosses and carries the flame in a wide wave right into the town. Everywhere you look, houses are ablaze, and a wave of fire rushes like a stream straight to the cathedral, to the military hut, to the powder magazine. Wives and children rush in terror through the narrow streets, fleeing from the flames, and they run to Chagan and Yaik."

Here you can see copper trunks that were used earlier in extinguishing fires, a fireman's suit from the 60s and 70s of the last century, a working model of "Lightning Protection" shows how a haystack lights up without a lightning rod.

On May 10, 1979, because of a child's prank, one of the biggest fires in the city occurred – the roof of the Pedagogical Institute burned. It is this incident that is depicted on the layout. The first fire pump in the city appeared in 1913.

The museum presents helmets of the post-war period. The black helmet says "Always ready!" In the fire center there are also psychological rooms where you can clearly learn how a fire occurs. There is also a corner where badges, awards and certificates are located.

On the "kalanche" - so firefighters call the tower of the oldest fire station in Kazakhstan. It was from the "kalancha" that the watchman on duty watched the city. When he saw the smoke, he would report it to the others, and firemen on harnessed horses with barrels of water would ride out to the scene. In 2015, the 2nd AP celebrated its 150th anniversary.

Address: Uralsk