The U.S. Forest Service International Programs (USFS IP) provided emergency technical assistance to units of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU) in three regions to improve their capacity to respond to emergency situations under martial law conditions, as well as to increase the level of personal safety of firefighters-rescuers. Their role is critical in wartime, and the risks are multiplied.
The firefighter combat clothing, firefighter helmets, firefighter protective boots and other personal protective equipment, firefighter rescue belts, fire lanterns, fire hoses of various diameters, high-power diesel generators on platform trailers were purchased and transferred into ownership or free use for the Fire and Rescue Detachments of the Main Departments of the SESU in the Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizka and Kyiv regions. All this equipment with a total cost of over 130 thousand US dollars was purchased within the framework of the " Ukraine Wildland Fire Project ". This project is implemented by the NGO "Agency for the Sustainable Development of the Carpathian Region “FORZA".
“This support is a testament to the importance of international cooperation and solidarity during times of crisis. The generators will ensure that essential services can continue to operate during emergencies. By providing this equipment, the U.S. Forest Service is helping the Ukrainian people to withstand in this war”, said Lesya Loyko, Head of NGO FORZA.
This is the third transfer of equipment to the Detachment of SESU in Chornobyl, where the US Forest Service has for a long time been helping to build the capacity to respond to emergency situations to prevent and eliminate fires in the natural ecosystems of the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone.
"We are pleased to note that the level of our cooperation with the US Forest Service has been growing all the time in recent years. We share experience and join our efforts to ensure that the emergency services are better prepared to respond, as well as the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone is safe," said Dmytro Pidhurnyi, Deputy Head of the Main Department of State Emergency Services of Ukraine in the Kyiv region. – (Instead of this quote for the Dnipropetrovsk region, cite a quote from Oleg Kushniruk, for the Zaporizhia region - Oleksandr Sychov)
"U.S. Forest Service recognizes the vital work that state emergency services personnel do every day in Ukraine, and we are proud to support them by providing this critical equipment. We believe that this support will go a long way in helping the brave men and women who put their lives on the line to keep the Ukrainian communities safe”, said Matt Wills, Program Manager for Eastern Europe, U.S. Forest Service.
The USDA Forest Service (USFS) International Programs Office has supported natural resource and emergency management programs in Ukraine since 2005. The activity is undertaken in partnership with government agencies, non-governmental organizations, educational institutions, and researchers. The American Foresters, who have always been at the forefront of environmental conservation and protection, recognize the critical role played by the state emergency services in responding to natural disasters and other emergencies caused by human beings’ activity. That is why, in addition to providing support in the form of equipment, they systematically conduct training in Ukraine on basic forest firefighter skills, fire behavior, personal safety, coordination, the basics of incident command and incident management system, as well as contribute to the implementation of necessary reforms.
For more information:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/about-agency/international-programs
Petro Pavlychenko, at petro.pavlychenko@fs-ip.us