The fire service, known as the Barun Yantra Karyalaya, opened its first station in Kathmandu in 1937 with a single vehicle. An iron tower was erected to monitor the city and watch for fire. As a precautionary measure, firemen were sent to the areas which were designated as accident-prone areas. In 1944, the fire service was extended to the neighboring cities of Lalitpur and Bhaktapur. In 1966, a fire service was established in Kathmandu airport. In 1975, a West German government donation added seven fire engines to Kathmandu's fire service. The fire service in the city is also overlooked by an international non-governmental organization, the Firefighters Volunteer Association of Nepal (FAN), which was established in 2000 with the purpose of raising public awareness about fire and improving safety.