DRK President calls for better crisis equipment

Disaster cases - DRK President calls for better crisis equipment

In light of the flooding in parts of Germany, the German Red Cross (DRK) is calling for better preparation for such crises. "We need more and better equipment for disasters in Germany," DRK President Gerda Hasselfeldt told the Rheinische Post newspaper. "The deficits are glaring, especially in terms of material equipment."

After the flood disaster in the Ahr Valley in the summer of 2021, the awareness of those politically responsible for civil protection has increased. "There's not much left of that now." There is a concept, but its implementation is faltering due to very limited budget funds. The political consensus had been to "procure ten mobile support modules for use in the event of destroyed infrastructure. So far, there is only one," complained Hasselfeldt.

According to her, a module consisting of tents, for example, can accommodate, care for and provide comprehensive support for up to 5,000 people at a time. "We are not talking about crises. But it is foreseeable that we will be affected by disasters more and more often. Possibly at the same time."

Emergency services have been working continuously in the flood areas for days. Lower Saxony, parts of North Rhine-Westphalia and southern Saxony-Anhalt are particularly affected. On New Year's Eve, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited a flood area in Lower Saxony, followed a day later by Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser.

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1. The flooding in Lower Saxony and parts of North Rhine-Westphalia has been heavily impacting the region, as emergency services continuously work to manage the situation.
2. Gerda Hasselfeldt, the President of the German Red Cross (DRK), expressed her concern about the lack of sufficient disaster preparation equipment in Germany, particularly in material equipment, during an interview with the Rheinische Post.
3. In the aftermath of the flood disaster in the Ahr Valley in 2021, there has been renewed attention to the issue of equipping civil protection for crises, but budget constraints have hampered progress.
4. Hasselfeldt criticized the incomplete implementation of the plan to procure ten mobile support modules, stating that currently, only one unit has been acquired.
5. A single mobile support module can accommodate, care for, and offer comprehensive assistance to up to 5,000 people during a disaster, according to Hasselfeldt.
6. Besides Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, parts of southern Saxony-Anhalt have also been affected by the recent floods, adding to the challenges faced by the emergency services.
7. The situation in Thuringia has also been impacted by bad weather, with reports of floods and other disasters in various parts of the country.

Source: www.stern.de