The Ukrainian Red Cross took part in large-scale international training exercises in the Rivne region

The Ukrainian Red Cross partnered in organising large-scale international training exercises involving Ukraine’s volunteer fire brigades and fire and rescue units from European Union countries, held in the Rivne region.

Over the course of two days, more than 80 participants from Ukraine and EU countries practised coordinated emergency response, exchanged practical experience and strengthened their professional skills. Volunteers from the Ukrainian Red Cross emergency response teams also took part in the exercises, working alongside representatives of other emergency services at the training sites, where they practised response procedures for a range of emergency scenarios.

With the support of the Ukrainian Red Cross, volunteer fire brigades from the Kushuhum community in the Zaporizhzhia region and the Krasnosilka community in the Odesa region also participated in the exercises.

Participants practised searching for and rescuing people trapped under rubble, providing first aid, conducting search and rescue operations, responding to road traffic accidents, extinguishing fires in different conditions, evacuating injured people and responding to forest fires in mine-contaminated areas.

These international exercises provide an important platform for sharing experience, strengthening partnerships between Ukrainian and EU emergency response services, and improving preparedness for joint action during emergencies.

The event was supported by the German Red Cross, which continues to strengthen the capacity of the Ukrainian Red Cross and its partners in emergency preparedness and response.