1.1. Preventing and mitigating the consequences of natural and man-made disasters in the cross-border area

The project aims at improvement and enhancement of the cross-border cooperation of the Bulgarian and Turkish authorities, responsible for risk management and immediate reaction in case of floods, as well as at reduction of floods consequences in the cross-border region of Haskovo, Bulgaria and Edirne, Turkey.

The activities planned within the project include setup of a training programme for flood risk management, preparation of Joint Operational Procedures and Common Action Plan.  Diving clothing for rescue team members such as suits, vests, and etc., will be delivered as well as specialized equipment:  lifeboat secured with a remote controlled flying system (including 2 multicopters and 1 drone) and special-purpose vehicle for transportation and installation of mobile flood barriers. The preparation of scenario is envisaged for the conduction of a field demonstration in Edirne as well as trainings for the management and the operational staff. A seminar will also be organized for local authorities on topics related to flood risk management and reaction.

The implementation of the project will improve the operational capacity for joint actions. It will enhance the cooperation between the national emergency management bodies and the local authorities in the cross-border. Another important project result will be raising the awareness of the population in the cross border region for disaster risk management.

Project status: Finished

The project partners have implemented the activities according to the schedule.

The project was implemented in partnership of two important public institutions working in the sphere of prevention, protection and minimization the risks from man-made and natural disasters in the cross border area of Bulgaria and Turkey.

In frame of the project, two professional teams of fire-fighters and flood experts responsible for risk management together increased their capacity for taking immediate joint reaction in case of flood, as well as for reduce of the consequences of the floods in the cross-border region of Haskovo – Edirne.

By the project were purchased specialized equipment for improving the capacity of institutions, responsible for the actions in case of floods, risk management, as well as for reduce of the consequences of the floods in the cross-border region of Haskovo – Edirne.

Also, joint training program and joint intervention procedures were elaborated. On the base of these program and procedures the expert teams from Bulgaria and Turkey realized together field demonstrations for emergency response in the Cross border area.

Project materials:

Project promotional materials are available HERE.

Project Flyer (Bulgarian version) is available HERE.

Project Flyer (Turkish version) is available HERE.

Project Leaflet (Bulgarian version) is available HERE.

Project Leaflet (Turkish version) is available HERE.

Project products:

Brochure (Bulgarian version) is available HERE.

Brochure (Turkish version) is available HERE.

The project is focused on tackling the basic and global problems which are closely linked with  forest fires, floods, atmosphere pollution, biotic agents and climate changes’ influence.

Creation of a formal cooperation network working on prevention and mitigation of the consequences from natural and man-made disasters between Dimitrovgrad and Uzunkopru municipalities is envisaged. Within the project there will be constructed a tower and  automatic technical equipment for observation and prevention of forest fires on the territory of Dimitrovgrad municipality that will cover a perimeter of about 26 km. The automatic observatory is designed for monitoring, safeguarding, analyses, communication and early prevention in cases of fire and other unfavourable events in the covered perimeter. a Flood Prevention Information System will be installed in Uzunköprü municipality that will work with a specialized software and will deliver data in real time. A Common Strategy for Prevention from Natural and Man-made Disasters and mitigating the consequences from them across the Cross border region will be elaborated for ensuring sustainability of the project.

Project implementation will contribute to better protection of the population and conservation of biological and landscape diversity in the border region. The installation of a system for early warning of natural disasters in Uzunkupru and construction of a watchtower in the municipality of Dimitrovgrad will reduce the negative impacts of forest fires, floods, natural and other man-made disasters.

Project status: Finished

The idea of project “Prevention and minimization of the Risks for the Environment and Vision for Innovative Tools /PREVENT/” started lots of years ago. Fighting against natural and man-made disasters in the cross-border area can be a challenge for both of the project partners – Dimitrovgrad Municipality and Uzunkopru Municipality. That is how they come with the idea of realizing a project which aims at preventing disasters and mitigating the consequences from them. One of the main activities for Dimitrovgrad Municipality is the construction of an Automatic Observatory Tower, which monitors and prevents forest fires. There is an equipped Control Centre in the building of the municipality, where the alarm for potential fire is going after its been detected from the Observatory Tower on site. After receiving that signal, the Control Centre is sending it to the relevant institutions and entities responsible for disaster management. In Uzunkopru Municipality is installed an early detection system for preventing floods on the rivers Ergene and Kirkavak. A special operational flood forecasting system software system has been developed that collects data and transmits in real time the accumulated information from the installed systems. Both partners put a lot of effort and worked hard for the smooth and successful implementation of the project. They have had difficulties through the stages of implementation but combining their knowledge, experience and common goals, managed to get through every situation.

The construction, installation and operation of the prevention systems contribute in regard of the population of the region, the ecosystems, habitats, economic entities and for all of the institutions involved in risk prevention. The established relationships between the partners and institutions that are involved in hazards management within the project are fundamental for future cooperation and join initiatives.

Project website:

http://preventdisaster.org/

Project materials:

Project materials (folder and information board) are available HERE.

Project products:

The Project logo is available HERE.

The Project brochure (in Bulgarian and English) is available HERE.

The Project brochure (in Turkish and English) is available HERE.

The Common Strategy for Prevention from Natural and Man-made Disasters and Mitigating the consequences from them (English version) is available HERE.

The Common Strategy for Prevention from Natural and Man-made Disasters and Mitigating the consequences from them (Bulgarian version) is available HERE.

The Common Strategy for Prevention from Natural and Man-made Disasters and Mitigating the consequences from them (Turkish version) is available HERE.

The Flood Early Warning System is available on the web site: www.preventdisaster.org at the following link: http://taskin.eastus.cloudapp.azure.com/web/.

The UFIS USER GUIDE is available HERE and on the web site: www.preventdisaster.org at the following link: http://preventdisaster.org/docs/UFIS_guide_in_ENG.pdf.

The presentation from the First aid and rescue training held in Uzunkopru on 13-14 March 2018 is available HERE.