Despite four major fires in two days on military sites, General Onno Eichelsheim does not believe it is necessary to pause defense exercises as long as it is dry. He finds it ‘very annoying for bystanders, campsites and nature itself’, he says during a press moment in Hilversum, ‘but we have to keep practicing to be ready for crises and to train our people’.
“We really need those 365 days a year to get our units practiced and trained,” says the Commander of the Armed Forces. “That may be possible in a different way and that is my responsibility.”
Additional measures have been in place since Thursday. For example, no pyrotechnic aids, ammunition that emits a lot of heat or explosives are used in the exercises, says Eichelsheim. “We also no longer do cooking activities, so we have scaled down everything that causes heat.”
When asked whether these measures should not have been taken earlier with this drought, Eichelsheim answers: “That was possible yesterday.”
The Royal Military Police is still investigating the causes of the major fires on training grounds at ‘t Harde, Weert and Oirschot. Eichelsheim does not want to anticipate this, but takes into account that the cause lies with Defense.
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