The Lithuanian population's preparation for emergency situations is insufficient: almost half say they know how to act in case of natural and other disasters, and only one in ten has a family plan, reported the Ministry of the Interior (MIA).
Such research data were presented on Tuesday at the presentation of the new information campaign "We are a team - we have a plan" held at the MK Čiurlionis School of Arts at the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) covert location. It is intended to prepare for a possible nuclear accident, military threats and other disasters.
“Knowing and being prepared for different scenarios is very important. And that's why today we are launching a long-term information campaign "We are a team and we have a plan", said the Minister of the Interior, Agnė Bilotaitė, at the presentation event.
"We are living in a special historical era full of tensions and great trials. Pandemic, influx of illegal migrants, Russia war in Ukraine, the unsafe Astrava nuclear power plant - these are the tests that have come to us one after the other," she added.
According to the minister, these circumstances force us to take a different look at civil safety, which has been neglected in recent decades - the population's preparedness for emergency situations remains insufficient, people lack the skills necessary for survival.
A quarter of the population has a departure bag ready
The public opinion survey commissioned by the Ministry of the Interior shows that only 9 percent residents would definitely know how to act in case of natural or man-made disasters. Another 41 percent people think they know how to deal with such situations.
"We have been conducting such a study for three years in a row and it can be seen that the situation has not changed much according to the numbers. But if we look at what lies behind those numbers, the situation has really changed. If two years ago we thought we knew how to act in the event of war, we also knew how to act in the event of the Astravos nuclear power plant accident (...) now events have shown that our imagination is different, far from reality", said Eglė Vileikienė, the senior advisor to the ministry who presented the study.
According to the research, 25 percent Residents of Lithuania have their departure bags ready, and every tenth participant of the survey has discussed the family's plan on how to act in the event of an emergency with their relatives. The data shows that only a fifth of the population has ever taken part in emergency training.
"Those people who are between 30 and 50 years old, have a higher level of education, have a higher than average income, as well as residents of big cities, are more aware. Elderly people also have less of that information - residents of small towns and villages. This is a vulnerable group that lacks that information," said E. Vileikienė.
According to the research, 59 percent 21 percent of the respondents did not participate in training on how to behave during an emergency situation, that they participated in such training. respondents. More than half of the respondents participated in such training at the workplace.
It is planned to reach one million inhabitants
44 percent would know how to act in the event of an evacuation, 40 percent in the event of war, and 37 percent in the event of an accident at the Astrava nuclear power plant, according to a survey of residents.
According to Eglė Vileikienė, the group of people who participated in the training know better how to behave during crisis situations.
The research was conducted from September 2022 to November 14, 30, during which 3027 residents of the country aged 15-75 were interviewed. The error does not exceed 1,8 percent.
The civil protection information campaign "We are a team" was initiated by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. We have a plan" is planned to reach 1 million. of the country's population, it is intended to ensure better public preparedness for possible threats and a higher culture of self-defense.
According to the ministry, almost 0,5 million was allocated for the campaign. euros.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Department of Fire Protection and Rescue already carried out one civil safety information campaign last spring. Then, department officials with civil protection specialists planned to visit local communities, schools for a month, meet with elders and social workers, seniors and people with disabilities to give advice on how to behave in various emergency situations, show how to pack the so-called departure or survival bag, help determine alert messages on mobile phones to answer your questions.
Authors: Milena Andrukaitytė, Paulius Perminas
