In the Jukola relay organized in Kotka, you even have to be prepared for drones. According to the organizers, the situation is calm.
The Jukola message weekend will be contested this year in Kotka. Photo from 2019. Jussi Saarinen
Jukola’s relay will take place this weekend in Kotka. The location in Southeast Finland means exceptional preparations.
Competition director Ari Kukkonen says that the security plan for the event is prepared for the threat of drones. Preparation is necessary, as drones strayed into the nearby areas of Kouvola, Luumäki and Iitti in the spring.
– Nine years ago, when this project was launched, no one could imagine that such things should even be thought about. This is exceptional, says Kukkonen.
The organizers are in contact with the authorities. If the situation were to change, the organizers would receive information and action instructions from the police.
– Suspending the competition is beyond a very high threshold. Even the authorities don’t stop the race under any conditions, but if the risk is high, then we act in advance according to the instructions planned with the police and rescue authorities.
– If the police tell us to leave, we leave determinedly.
The event center is at Kymi airport. Not all of the people present will be allowed inside, as it is estimated that up to 40,000 people will be there during the weekend.
About half of the number are competitors.
– We have parking at the airport. It is perhaps the first concrete area where people would be directed.
There are a maximum of 2,000 competitors on the terrain at any one time. The information for them would be obtained through tick monitoring.
Terrain raked
The defense forces and the police were there when the drone fell in the forest in Iiti in April. Jaakob Lahtinen
The organizers have thought about their tasks carefully.
– There are instructions for crisis communication if any situation arises, if you have to think about suspending the race. This can also be a fire or a storm. The safety manager bears the primary responsibility. We have a team of six people who make decisions according to official instructions.
There are also tick supervisors in the forest who monitor the conditions for vandalism and technical disturbances.
Kukkonen is sure that there are no drones that strayed into Finland and fell on the ground on the Jukola route.
– We have walked the terrain criss-crossed with a tight comb. There is no observation that there are any drones. They would have been revealed by now.
The Venlo relay will be contested on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Jukola’s relay starts on Saturday at 23:00.