Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-09-14-Speech-1-148"
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"en.20090914.25.1-148"2
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"Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, what took place in Greece this summer should never be allowed to repeat itself in Europe again. A total of 75 fires rampaged through Greece alone, six of them completely out of control, the worst of them, as we have heard today, north of Athens, close to the capital. It is only thanks to the courageous and selfless efforts of the primarily voluntary fire brigades and other voluntary organisations that the fires in many regions were not able to blaze in an uncontrolled manner and that human tragedies were kept to a minimum.
I therefore have a very high regard for my comrades, the voluntary fire brigades, whose equipment – put politely – was often not exactly state of the art, as we have heard. When I use the words ‘colleagues’ or ‘comrades’, I do so because I myself have been a member of a voluntary fire-fighting organisation in Austria for decades and so absolutely do feel sympathy and empathy for the efforts made.
Let me move on to the Commission’s observations. I think it is tremendous that European action forces should help where local fire fighters cannot manage alone. I am, however, also convinced that the old saying ‘Help yourself, and God will help you’ is an important axiom, and for that reason, I also think it is very important that civil protection mechanisms be built up. All I can do in this regard is recommend and urge that use be made of the know-how that exists, especially in central Europe, in Germany and in Austria, which is to say, the nationwide voluntary systems, voluntary fire brigades that have been tried and tested for over a century.
As a fireman myself, I would also be happy to create contacts with the regional and national voluntary fire authorities. In such cases, it is also interesting to do something yourself and if this is seen as desirable, I can offer to carry out a pilot project with our Greek friends on the establishment of a voluntary fire brigade in a selected region or municipality. I would also be more than happy to actively help and be involved in such a project together with my colleagues in the Upper Austrian provincial fire-fighting association."@en1
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