Joint Firefighting Unit Refresher Training was the Croatian contribution for 2012 to the Disaster Management Training Programme ofthe Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Initiative for South EasternEurope (DPPI SEE) and it was organized by the DPPI and NationalProtection and Rescue Directorate.

Training was held from 5 to 11 May 2012 in the Firefighting Operations

Centre of the National Protection and Rescue Directorate in Divulje near Split.

The three-day conference covered a variety of subjects such as, and inter alia, Environmental Safety, Technologies and Equipment for environmental assessment and protection, Emergency situations and disaster management, Environmental impact assessment and sustainable development, Environmental health, etc.

Following numerous presentations delivered by a number of speakers, both national and international, on Day I and II of the conference, a field trip with the working title “Awareness and preparedness for emergencies at local level” was organized on Day III of the conference whereby the participants were introduced to critical infrastructure elements as potential risks to community safety in Somesul Cald Valley.

This training was Republic of Turkey’s contribution to the Disaster Management Training Programme for 2012 within the scope of DPPI SEE DMTP Annual Work Plan and was hosted by Prime Ministry, Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD).

Background:

The literal meaning of “psycho-social" is the dynamic relationship of psychological and social impacts which continuously interact with each other. On the other hand, this term can be defined as a body of multi-disciplinary services provided at every phase of the disaster cycle and entailing disaster psycho-social support; the prevention of any likely post-disaster psychological disharmony/disorder; restoring and the rehabilitation of relationships both at the family and community levels; ensuring that those affected recognize their capacities and are strengthened in the normalizing process; the increase of communal coping/relief/recovery skills in the probable future disasters and emergencies; and the provision of support to relief workers.

This training was hosted and organised by the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief. The venue of the training was the Training Centre for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief, Unit Sežana (TC), Slovenia. The training represented Slovenian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Programme 2012.
Training objectives

During the 8-day training there were 80 hours of various lessons, which took form of lectures, short demonstrations and practical work in smaller caves for consolidation of knowledge and bigger final exercise of the cave rescue activities.

Training was based on various practical exercises and theoretical knowledge, which were necessary for successful rescue activity and even for the prevention of accidents in the caves. 
Extract from contents:

• Cave conservation;
• Single rope technique – Alpine style;
• Procedures for accident in the cave;
• Examination of the victim;
• Setting up of evacuation and transport systems and learning rescue manoeuvres;
• Preparation and evacuation of a victim/stretcher;
• Planning cave rescue and importance of exercise/rescue analysis;
• Setting up rescue units for international intervention;
• Presentation of various specialties inside the rescue services.

Target audience

The programme was primarily aimed at volunteer speleologists of caving clubs, fire-fighters, police officers, soldiers, health workers and other interested protection, rescue and relief forces whose members had passed the speleologist’s examination or had completed equivalent national programmes for independent caving activity and have sufficient experience in the field with excellent knowledge of rope technique (SRT). All participants had to demonstrate in practice on the first day of training that they have the required level of knowledge.
Methodology

The training was implemented as a combined structure of theoretical lectures and practical work given and supervised by the licensed teachers and instructors from the Training Centre for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief of the Republic of Slovenia (ACPDR). The training programme ‘’Cave Rescuer’’ is approved and signed by the Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia.

This training was hosted and organised by the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief and supported by the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency. The venue of the training was the Training Centre for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief in Ig near Ljubljana (Slovenia). The training represented Slovenian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Programme 2012.

Training objectives
 
At the training the participants gained theoretical knowledge and basic practical skills in the field of fire extinguishing, known as hot fire/flashover training.The training therefore improved the participants’ knowledge of basic skills and techniques of fire-fighting and basic operational procedures for indoor fires. Generally the training also intends to raise awareness on procedures and practices of fire development and behaviour in different scenarios.
 
Target audience
 
The training was intended for professional operational fire-fighters and commanders from the DPPI SEE countries (1-2 per country).
 
Methodology
 
The training was implemented as a combined structure of theoretical lectures and practical work given and supervised by the licensed teachers and instructors who were trained by the Swedish Rescue Services Agency. The training ‘’Hot Fire Training - module A’’ is proved and signed by the Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia.

The course was organized and hosted by the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief at the Training Centre for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief in Ig near Ljubljana (Slovenia). The course represented Slovenian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme 2011.

 
The course objectives
The course focused on increasing participants’ effectiveness in reading and writing documents related to disaster management. After the course, participants:

• Became familiar with the basic terminology used in disaster management.
• Learned the terminology used in relevant documents and correspondence.
• Were able to read documents, such as EURATOM Acts and EU Council Decisions, and other texts related to this field, understand key points and most details.
• Were able to understand authentic European Commission Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) messages, assessments and situation reports.
• Were able to write MIC messages, assessments and short situation reports, based on given scenarios, to express ideas in a properly organized manner demonstrating a suitable control of basic grammatical structures.
• Were able to identify and correct language mistakes in the above mentioned correspondence.

 
Target audience
The course was intended for senior civil protection operational experts or advisers for international affairs that needed to understand the documents and communication in English language, particularly when they were involved in communication/correspondence in relation to provision of mutual assistance in disasters. The representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey participated in the course.

The course was organised within the DPPI SEE/ Capacity for Disaster Reduction Initiative (CADRI)/ Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) DRR project (Phase II) and hosted by Romanian General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations. The course represented Romanian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme 2011

The aim of the course was to support the development of disaster risk reduction capacity at all levels within the South East European region governments and organizations in order to improve their ability to better understand and manage the variety of disasters the region faces nowadays.

Representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Turkey participated in the course.

The Command, Control and Coordination (C3) Course is the first in the set of activities planned within the DPPI SEE JERU project work plan. The course was organized by the Sector for Emergency Management of the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia in the framework of the Initiative.

 

The main objective of the course is to prepare team leaders of JERU Flood response teams of the South East Europe for interventions in case of floods in the area of the South Eastern Europe, in addition to increasing their awareness and knowledge of the international disaster operations and enhancing their capability to lead their respective units in a multi-task and multi-stakeholder international environment. Moreover, course will provide opportunity to increase their knowledge of international response systems and coordination mechanisms and the role of team leaders in mission cycle, improve teamwork skills and integrate these in the existing national and international coordination arrangements in a disaster-affected country, as well as to discuss previous experiences in particular those where special expertise was required and/or used.

 

The course target audience are nominated team leaders of flood response teams from SEE and their replacements. Participants should have diverse background in national flood response operations and comprehensive knowledge of all team functions, comprehensive knowledge of water rescue techniques, tactics, tools and equipment and be familiar with composition of their team.

Training Objectives  

The course intended to provide practical and theoretical training in  Disaster risk reduction. It was designed and run by group of experts  from DPPI states and international partner organizations, such as the  International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).   
Aim of the course  

The aim of the course was to support the development of disaster risk  reduction capacity at all levels within the South East European region  governments and organizations in order to improve their ability to  better understand and manage the variety of disasters the region faces  today. All participants of the course received a training certificate. Based on  their facilitation skills, some participants from the course were  selected to participate in a Training-of-Trainers in 2011 in Croatia to  become the main resources for DRR training in the region. In addition,  they were included in a pool of DRR expert database to be developed by  UNISDR for DPPI SEE.  

 Target Audience  

The candidates had to fulfill the following criteria: - Work in an organization engaged in the area of Disaster Risk Reduction - Minimum of 3 years experience in topics related to natural disasters - Fluency in English  

The course was organised within the DPPI SEE/ Capacity for Disaster Reduction Initiative (CADRI)/ Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) DRR project (Phase II) and hosted by Croatian National Protection and Rescue Directorate. The course at the same time represented Croatian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme 2011. The aim of the course was to strike a balance between presentation skills and other aspects of training course management, from the preparation of material to running exercises; and from training needs analysis to evaluation of training, including review of training events. The event was part of capacity development project supported by CADRI and MSB aimed at supporting the development of disaster risk reduction capacity at all levels

• governments and organizations
• in the South Eastern Europe region in order to improve their ability to better understand and manage the variety of disasters faced by the region.

The training course was attended by representatives of national emergency management authorities and Red Cross Societies of Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey.

The training was conducted at the Training Centre for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief in Ig near Ljubljana (Slovenia) and it was hosted by the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief and supported by the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency.

The training represented Slovenian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme 2011. Training objectives At the training the participants gained theoretical knowledge and basic practical skills in the field of fire extinguishing, known as hot fire/flashover training. The training therefore improved the participants’ knowledge of basic skills and techniques of fire-fighting and basic operational procedures for indoor fires. Generally the training also intends to raise awareness on procedures and practices of fire development and behaviour in different scenarios. Target audience The training was intended for professional operational fire-fighters and commanders from the DPPI SEE countries (1-2 per country).

It was attended by representatives of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Romania and Turkey Methodology The training was implemented as a combined structure of theoretical lectures and practical work given and supervised by the licensed teachers and instructors who were trained by the Swedish Rescue Services Agency. The training ‘’Hot Fire Training - module A’’ is proved and signed by the Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia.

The training was organised by the Bulgarian Federation of Speleology and Bulgarian Cave Rescue Unit, Chief Directorate Fire Safety and Civil Protection of the Ministry of Interior of Republic of Bulgaria and supported by the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief (ACPDR), Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia. The training represented Bulgarian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme 2011

 
Training objectives
During the 8-day training there were 80 hours of various lessons, which took form of lectures, short demonstrations, practical work in smaller caves for consolidation of knowledge and bigger final exercise of the cave rescue activities.

 

Training was based on various practical exercises and theoretical knowledge, necessary for successful rescue activity and even for the prevention of accidents in the caves.

Extract from contents

 

 
Cave conservation

Single rope technique – Alpine style

Procedures for accident in the cave

Examination of the victim

Setting up of evacuation and transport systems and learning rescue manoeuvres

Preparation and evacuation of a victim/stretcher

Planning cave rescue and importance of exercise/rescue analysis

Setting up rescue units for international intervention

Presentation of various specialities inside the rescue services
Target audience

The programme was primarily aimed at volunteer speleologists of caving clubs, firefighters, police officers, soldiers, health workers and other interested protection, rescue and relief forces whose members had passed the speleologist’s examination or had completed equivalent national programmes for independent caving activity and had sufficient experience in the field with excellent knowledge of rope technique (SRT). All participants had to demonstrate in practice on the first day of training that they had the required level of knowledge.
Methodology

The training was implemented as a combined structure of theoretical lectures and practical work given and supervised by the licensed teachers and instructors from the Training Centre for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief of the Republic of Slovenia of ACPDR. The training programme ‘’Cave Rescuer’’ is approved and signed by the Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia. 

The refresher training for firefighters of Montenegro was hosted and organized by the National Protection and Rescue Directorate of the Republic of Croatia and co-organized by the Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Initiative for South Eastern Europe (DPPI SEE) from 21 to 26 October 2012 in the Firefighting Operations Centre Divulje near Split as the second of two refresher trainings with respect to wildfires management (the first refresher training was organized for firefighters of Bosnia and Herzegovina in May 2012).

The workshop which represents Turkish contribution to the DPPI SEE DMTP for the year 2013 was hosted by Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency of Turkey (AFAD). Fourteen (14) participants from DPPI SEE member countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Romania and Serbia) and 65 participants from AFAD, Ministry of Labor and Social Security, Ministry of Environmental and Urban Planning, universities and non-governmental organizations from Turkey took part in the workshop.

 

The following topics were discussed at the workshop through a set of group studies:

• Legal and regulatory framework
• Economic and financial issues
• Institutional framework
• Climate change
• ICT information & communication technology
• Transport
• Chemical materials
• Measures on mining waste

Marine pollution from accidentsOn Day I of the workshop the participants were given an opportunity to visit AFAD’s 112 Emergency Call Center and MOBESE City Information and Security System. Detailed account the workshop can be found in Future Policies and Strategy for Man-Made Disaster Management-AFAD REPORT

The final workshop on “Disaster Inventory Management System: DesInventar” and the presentation of the historical data collection on disaster loss in Albania was organised within the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme for the year 2014 and represents Albanian contribution to the Programme. The Workshop was hosted by the General Directorate of Civil Emergencies - Ministry of Internal Affairs of Albania and was jointly organized by the DPPI SEE, UNISDR and CIMA Research Foundation.

 

The main objectives of the workshop was to introduce the DesInventar as a web platform tool for building disaster database with its methodology for disasters loss accounting and to present the Albanian historical inventory on disaster losses.

 

Some of the topics covered within the workshop programme were: Disaster Theory (Hyogo Framework for Action, Risk Assessment, National Disaster Database and Inventory), the Global Assessment Report GAR 2013, Introduction to DesInventar (Data cards, data collection methodology, concepts and definitions, event definition, type of disaster, effects), Data Entry process, How to get DesInventar for your country, etc. 

This seminar was Serbian contribution to the Disaster Management Training Programme for 2013 within the activities of Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Initiative for South Eastern Europe (DPPI SEE) and was organized by the Sector for Emergency Management of the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia.

 

Seminar was attended by representatives from 9 countries of the region – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Romania and Turkey, as well as representatives of the Red Cross Serbia.

 

The main goal of the seminar was presenting the place and role of Civil Protection (CP) Units in the Protection and Rescue System of Republic of Serbia and countries in the region. This was accomplished through sharing experience and lessons learned on drafting and implementing the legal regulations in this filed and through discussions on methods of their forming on the national and local level and their training. During seminar each participating country shared its experience in creating CP units and their use in protection and rescue system of their country.

 

Within the seminar a consequence management field exercise “ADA 2013” was organized. The main objective was to show operational capabilities of civil protection units of the Republic of Serbia specialized for protection and rescue from the ruins and floods, as well as the capabilities of CP units specialized for evacuation and shelter provision and practice their cooperation with other emergency services and the Red Cross and therefore improve national ability to effectively respond to emergency situation.

The seminar was hosted by the Sector for Emergency Management of the Serbian Ministry of Interior within the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme for the year 2016. 

The seminar aimed to bring together civil protection professionals responsible for development of national risk assessment in their respective country and professionals involved in risk assessment at the local level. It provided an opportunity for exchange of experiences with/ among the DPPI SEE member countries on adoption of their national risk assessments and the methodology for risk assessment development, as well as for discussion on similarities and differences in legal obligations and responsibilities related to the risk assessment development. At the same time, one of the objectives was to trigger exchanges of professional views and opinions regarding the risks identified at the national level.

Thirty-three (33) persons attended the seminar, including eleven (11) participants - representatives of the DPPI SEE member countries (Albania, BiH, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia) and guest speakers from Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB), Serbian Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency, National Water Management Directorate, Public Water Management Company “Serbia Waters”, Republic Geodetic Authority, Petroleum Industry of Serbia „NIS“.

The seminar was organized in a plenary session with twenty-minute presentations delivered by all the participating countries and guest speakers.

 

• Image Gallery

The aim of the workshop hosted by AFAD’s Legal Consultancy Department was to encourage competent legal experts of the DPPI SEE member countries to exchange information with regard to their national disaster management frameworks and brainstorm constructive recommendations through assessment of the following: 

• Strengths and weaknesses of the existing legal frameworks 
• Legal analysis (if any) of regulations governing the areas such as early warning, environmental management, risk insurance, humanitarian aid, human rights, women and vulnerable groups in disasters 
• Need for amendments and/or adjustments in the disaster management legislations to comply with technological and/or social developments, including in line with other national and international requirements. 

Workshop discussions mainly built upon crucial elements of the countries’ presentations, including upon the key problems and gaps identified, e.g.: national strategic challenges in shifting the national focus from recovery and relief to prevention and preparedness and their reflection in the countries’ legal systems, the governments’ legal responsibilities throughout the disaster management cycle, national disaster management funding constraints under the existing legislations, etc.

Due to the on-going migrant/ refugee crisis, the workshop had a rather low attendance. Ten (10) participants from five (5) DPPI SEE member countries (Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia), next to other ten (10) representatives of AFAD, attended the event. This being the case, AFAD, inter alia, also put forth legal recommendations of Turkey for such crisis management.

• Event Report
• Image gallery

The seminar represents the Bulgarian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Training Programme for the year 2014 and was hosted by the Chief Directorate Fire Safety and Civil Protection of the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Bulgaria. 

The aim of the event was to facilitate the exchange of information and best practices of cooperation in the field of fire safety and civil protection between countries in the SEE region. The seminar provided the participants with the opportunity to establish connections for a better and more efficient operational response to natural and man-made disasters in the SEE region. 

Representatives of seven (7) DPPI SEE member states, namely Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey, participated in the seminar, in addition to competent representatives of the Bulgarian Red Cross.

In the course of the two-day seminar, the participants also had an opportunity to visit the National Operations Center situated at the premises of the Ministry of Interior where they were presented with information on the main activities of the Center (more detailed information on the seminar programme and observations by the host can be found in the “Report on the event” 

• Report on the Event
• List of participants
• Image gallery

The idea behind the workshop which represents the Macedonian contribution to the DPPI SEE Disaster Management Programme for the year 2014 was to get together experienced first responders and policy developers from the region in order to brain storm ideas about the most optimal model for disaster information management system. The workshop was hosted by the Protection and Rescue Directorate of the Republic of Macedonia. 

The workshop itself had two goals:

1) National - further development of the various national information systems of the DPPI SEE member states. Each participating state was given an opportunity to voice their demand for improvement of the existing national information system based on their experiences.

2) Regional - in support of the idea behind the creation of the DPPI SEE: “Strengthening and enhancing bilateral and multilateral cooperation, facilitating exchange of information in the field of disaster preparedness and prevention at all levels among competent national disaster management authorities.”

Experienced professionals with specific knowledge of disaster management and representatives of private sector engaged in disaster management related businesses gave presentations and lectures on the workshop topics. For details regarding the design, programme, lectures and participants at the workshop please refer to the Report on the event.