Project acronym: HITRO (686.939,03 EUR ERDF)
Lead Partner: Grad Duga Resa
Project Partners: Občina Črnomelj, Gasilska zveza Črnomelj, Vatrogasna zajednica Grada Duge Rese
Common challenges in the program area encountered by the project partners are security challenges in the event of natural and other disasters. The specific challenges of the Slovenian side of the partnership is an high vulnerbility to earthquakes. The territory of the municipality of Črnomelj is located in an area where earthquakes can cause major damage (VIII. degree according to the European markoseismological scale EMS). The Croatian side of the partnership respectively the area of the town of Duga Resa is increasingly exposed to floods and is situated in an area with a high probability of flood occurrence. The key idea of the project “HITRO – Joint cross-border protection and rescue operation team” is to create a cross-border partnership that will establish, train and equip a joint cross-border protection and rescue team that will be ready to react in the event of an catastrophic event and mitigate the consequences of natural and other disasters. Another important component of the project is raising awareness and educating citizens about how to behave in such situations and promoting responsible environmental behavior. The main objective of the overall project is to create a new standard of quality of services in the field of security and an integral co-operation of participants in the area of civil protection that crosses state borders in urban and rural areas of the border area. The main outcome of the project will be the creation and adoption of normative strategic / operational documentation for the border area, which includes the establishment of standard operational procedures for cross-border intervention of the team and an trained and equipped cross-border protection and rescue team for the security challenges that are increasingly encountered in the program area. The project, in addition to the responsiveness of civil protection forces to catastrophic events puts an emphasis on strengthening the population’s resistance to natural and other disasters through raising awareness and educating people on how to behave in such situations. This specific project objective is intended to be achieved through direct and indirect promotional activities in the form of an promotional campaigns and lectures to be carried out in schools, kindergartens, homes for the elderly and disabled and associations belonging to the category of vulnerable groups (young, elderly, disabled and other).
