Because of this a special corps of fire fighters was set up to act as sorts of vigilantes who patrolled their areas, always on the lookout for social unrest or other potential causes of fire and to act to the best of their means to put them out.
The poorer areas of the city were built more or less without planning and streets and alleys were tight, uneven and tortuous - at least before the reconstruction of Rome which followed the great fire of Rome in the time of Emperor Nero. The great fire acted as an impulse for legislation regarding urban planning and building techniques aimed at reducing the risk of fire: streets were made wider, fewer flammable materials were to be used in construction and fire prevention corps were set up all over the city.
