Ukrainian firefighters gain new skills thanks to Polish Aid
19.10.2020
Real flames, high temperature, heat radiation, and hazardous substance emissions. Such were the conditions Ukrainian firefighters had to face during the training they completed in September.
It is yet another initiative undertaken by the Main School of Fire Service as part of a project funded by the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which aims to strengthen the civil protection and security sector in Ukraine.
The simulation of the conditions that firefighters have to cope with in real life was possible by using a fire training simulator. It is a space designed to train firefighters in real-life conditions. The simulator imitates live fire, high temperature and heat radiation, as well as hazardous substance emissions. Firefighters can train their mental resilience in the immediate presence of various hazards. Apart from gaining practical skills, the training participants learned how to run training courses while using innovative rescue equipment.
The training took place in Lviv on 14-15 September 2020. It was attended by Ukrainian rescue instructors, representatives of the Heroes of Chernobyl Cherkasy Fire Safety Institute, the National University of Civil Defence of Ukraine in Kharkiv, as well as the Vinnitsa Higher Vocational School of Civil Protection of the Lviv State University of Life Safety. It is worth noting that the training could take place thanks to rescue instructors from Lviv, who were trained in recent years, and the Regional Rescue Training Centre in Lviv, established as part of previous Polish Aid projects.
Polish and Ukrainian firefighters have been cooperating closely for over a decade. The cooperation resulted in a number of projects providing specialist training in areas such as rescue worker safety, as well as chemical, ecological, water and road accident rescue. The Ukrainian firefighters also received specialist equipment, including measuring equipment and personal gear. In recent years, projects focused on training, as well as providing teaching resources and infrastructure. A special syllabus to train rescue services and volunteer firefighters in Ukraine was drafted and implemented. In Lviv, a modern mobile training centre for firefighters was created and equipped with a mobile modular rescue trainer. Only this year, similar but smaller training simulators, made up just of the so-called hot module, will go to Kharkiv, Cherkasy and Vinnitsa. They will serve as helpful tools to set up regional rescue training centres. The classes will be taught by instructors who have just completed their training.
The project of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration implemented by the Main School of Fire Service in Warsaw titled “Regional Rescue Training Centres – supporting the volunteer and professional fire services in Ukraine.” The funds donated by the MFA in 2019-2020 amounted to PLN 1.2 million.
