Crisis Management Commissioner Lenarčič awarded three medals for outstanding contribution to the Union Civil Protection Mechanism at the 8th European Civil Protection Forum. An award board from the European Commission’s DG ECHO were given the difficult task of selecting extraordinary contributions from the many nominations submitted by EU Member States and UCPM Participating States.
EU Medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) operation for Ukraine
Teams from Germany and Norway accepted the medals on behalf of the entire operation
Activities of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism in Ukraine constitute its largest operation to date, with roughly 150,000 tonnes of emergency assistance mobilised so far. As part of this unprecedented effort, the MEDEVAC operation transports patients requiring urgent medical care from Ukraine to hospitals across Europe. Within this coordinated display of European support, the contributions of Germany and Norway stood out.
Germany has played a pivotal and generous role in MEDEVAC; receiving over 1,000 Ukrainian patients in German hospitals – one third of the entire total transported so far.
Norway is recognised for its crucial part in making this operation a reality; as well as receiving nearly 400 patients in Norwegian hospitals, Norway offered a medical airplane for the exclusive purpose of transporting patients to safety. That plane has provided transportation for the majority of all patients evacuated from Ukraine – flying roughly twice a week.
Italian Civil Protection Team for their contribution to the UCPM following the floods in Libya
On 10 September 2023, Cyclone Daniel swept across eastern Libya, bringing devastating floods to the region – in particular, the towns of Al Bayda, Al Marj and Derna. Following this tragedy the UCPM was immediately mobilised, with ten UCPM member states answering Libya’s call for aid.
Amongst this display of European solidarity and support, the actions of Italy’s civil protection team stood out; arriving in Derna just 48 hours after disaster struck, they provided vital cross-sectoral support, with teams from the Italian Navy, Coast Guard, Airforce and Army working on the ground alongside an Urban Search & Rescue module and Technical Assistance Support Team.
In total, 100 Italian responders took part in the operation. Alongside all this, the team took on responsibility for security in one of the most dangerous UCPM missions of the last years.
The Commissioner awarded the medals to applause from the European Civil Protection community gathered at a ceremony on the second day of the European Civil Protection Forum, which took place at Tour & Taxis in Brussels on 4-5 June under the theme: “Shaping a disaster-resilient Union: Charting a path for the future of European civil protection.”
The event was a timely opportunity to look back at what has been achieved by the Union Civil Protection Mechanism, and to generate ideas for development, innovation and collaboration in the field of disaster risk management going forward. The event gathered over 1300 participants from over 70 countries who attended discussions, visited the stands of the Civil Protection village, watched demonstrations of various teams and enjoyed networking activities.
