The ties between the fire brigades in the Dutch-German border region are strengthened. Administrative agreements have been made about this.
Partly due to corona, cooperation was on the back burner. However, disasters and rescue operations do not end at the border. Volunteers at the fire stations, working in the border region with Germany, are offered a language course so that they can communicate even better with their German colleagues. “We really don’t start from zero,” says Mark Dijkhuis, spokesman for the Groningen Security Region. “Of course we know where to find each other when needed. But it is useful to be aware of each other’s terminology. We want to create more structure.”
The first page is turned
Last week, on the initiative of the Eems Dollard Region (EDR), the Dutch-German working group for cross-border disaster relief met in Emden. “We want to improve administrative cooperation,” says Jaap Kuin, vice-chairman of the Groningen Security Region, who also has fire service in his package. “Because of corona it has been stopped for a while. But now we’re picking up the thread again. We are still in the exploratory phase and whether an agreement will eventually roll out, we do not yet know. The book is on the table, the first page is turned.”
The emergency services agree on one thing: in the future there must be a standardized (communication) reporting system. This also applies to the entire Dutch-German border region. “For example, the Rütenbrock fire station just across the border at Ter Apel can be alerted from the Northern Netherlands control room in Drachten, but the post in Bunde, just across the border at Bad Nieuweschans, cannot. That’s because Germans work with different control rooms”, says Dijkhuis.
React quickly in emergency situations
“Disasters and other major rescue operations do not stop at the border. Good coordination of all actors and responsibilities and experience with joint exercises and cross-border communication are important to be able to respond quickly in emergency situations in the border area”, says Ilona Heijen, general manager Interreg/EDR.
One of the first steps in the collaboration is to reactivate the network of so-called ‘border liaisons’. This connects security services directly with their respective counterparts on both sides of the border. Each organization appoints a representative for this, Mark-Olaf Sorkale of the Groningen Security Region has noted on the EDR site.