Finland Times

 

Rescue departments in northern Finland are preparing for an international rescue exercise to be held in Kittilä, Finland from 28 September to 2 October 2015, according to a press release of the Ministry of Interior.

 

Four countries in the Barents Region—Finland, Norway, Sweden and Russia—will take part in the exercise hosted by Finland.

 

The exercise is based on a scenario where the resources of the Lapland Rescue Department and other rescue services in northern Finland are not sufficient to deal with the situation in the region but assistance has to be requested from the neighbouring countries.

 

The Barents Rescue 2015 Exercise aims to improve preparedness and cooperation between the participating countries.

 

The countries have signed an agreement concerning cooperation in the prevention of, preparedness for and response to emergencies in the Barents Region. Such exercises are arranged every two years. The previous excercise was hosted by Norway in 2013, and the next one will be held in Russia in 2017, said the release issued on May 13. 

 

The exercise in Kittilä will involve warning and alarming, requesting assistance, dealing with border crossing formalities, managing rescue operations, sharing and communicating information and handling the media.

 

The main focus will be on Host Nation Support, which refers to functions needed to ensure the smooth and effective reception of assistance in the country which has requested assistance.

 

The exercise scenarios in Finland involve a series of heavy rainfalls in Kittilä and a simultaneous mine accident.  

 

The mine accident exercise will take place at the largest gold mine in Europe, Agnico Eagle Finland in Kittilä.  

 

 When dealing with these situations, the authorities and other actors involved have to test both their professional skills and collaboration with experts arriving from neighbouring countries.

 

Overall responsibility for the exercise rests with the Finnish Ministry of the Interior.  

 

The Barents Rescue 2015 Exercise is organised by the Crisis Management Centre, Finland and the Ministry of the Interior Department for Rescue Services in collaboration with the Lapland Rescue Department and Agnico Eagle Finland.

 

The participants in the exercise comprise over forty organisations from Finland and key rescue and medical actors from the neighbouring countries.