© Jeannot Ries
Sunday marked the national day of civil safety, an occasion for the Grand Ducal Fire and Rescue Corps (CGDIS) to exhibit their full force with a demonstration in Cloche d'Or.
The CGDIS force is currently made up of 850 professional employees and 3,800 volunteers. Last year, they conducted a combined total of 67,000 operations, which equals more than 180 deployments per day.
CGDIS managing director Paul Schroeder provided insight into the evolving tasks and responsibilities of the force, which have become far more complex in recent years: "A few years ago, we only had to be familiar with extinguishing fries in combustion engines. Today we need to know our way around hybrid engines, electric ones, hydrogen ones, and gas ones. This means additional training for our firefighters, which they also need for modern houses."
Aside from advanced firefighting tactics, the CGDIS can also rely on new technologies, such as drones and robots, to fulfil their responsibilities in today's world.
Jerry Collignon from the technological services provided further insight: "There are places where humans are at extreme risk and therefore not allowed to enter. So, to protect people, we send in machines, which are easier to replace than humans. ... We are lucky to be technologically well-equipped at the CGDIS and we also plan on investing further in the future. For the sake of our people."
The evolution of technologies was also clearly evident during the World Rescue Challenge, the firefighting world cup held in Luxembourg over the past three days. 17 nations participated in the event. Schroeder commented: "Three years ago, there were almost only hydraulic machines, which have now made room for battery-powered equipment."
Aside from representing an opportunity to test their capabilities, the World Rescue Challenge was thus also used to evaluate the needs of the CGDIS forces in future missions.
