Minister Bofferding talked about a number of issues that concern the country’s first responders, and used the opportunity to elaborate on the new national plan for emergency services.
The guide is supposed to act as a sort of compass, which will help to support the development of the Luxembourg Fire & Rescue Corps (CGDIS).
One of the goals is to reduce the maximum amount of time that responders need to arrive at a location to 15 minutes.
At the moment, this limit is already kept in 78% of cases, but officials hope to arrive at 90 to 95% in the foreseeable future.
Especially in the north of the country, which is marked by slightly longer distances in between towns, emergency services aim to provide the same level of proficiency.
102 municipalities have been consulted and invited to provide their assessment of the plan. After three months, all recommendations will be revised and adapted if possible, before the new plan can come into effect.
The LSAP politician further explained how the 500-page-long document considers a long inventory of risks of all sorts, which may affect the country in the future.
This means that apart from everyday accidents, the plan also helps evaluate extraordinary events, such as the tornado of 2019, the pandemic, or climate-related issues like droughts or extreme cold.
Minister Bofferding emphasised that the activities of Luxembourg’s emergency services are directly related to the number of residents and the number of cross-border workers commuting from abroad every single day.
She therefore addressed the three necessary aspects that allow their operations to be successful: personnel, infrastructure, and financial means.
The respective budget will thus be increased by 8% over the coming years, equaling around €10 million per year. For the year 2021, CGDIS has more than €133 million at its disposal.
The Minister for Home Affairs also talked about the importance of advanced training for emergency staff members.
As an example, she conveyed that firefighters already conducted training sessions on how deal with electro vehicles who erupt in flames. She also expressed her support for continuing the inclusion of volunteers among emergency services.
In July 2021, CGDIS will celebrate its third anniversary. A number of mishaps have occurred since the formation, including a crash of the IT network, a firefighting vehicle burning down during an operation, and incidents of environmental pollution.
Minister Bofferding noted that the services are continuously training to better adapt to everyday challenges, but that certain investments are still needed, as in the domain of communication for instance.
Finally, Minister Bofferding conveyed that at this stage in the campaign, 80% of the 1,500 CGDIS responders have been vaccinated.
