Forty Romanian firefighters with eight technical means arrived on Sunday in Perpignan, southern France, to help fight forest fires, the Department for Emergency Situations said.

According to a DSU press release, sent to AGERPRES on Monday, during the welcoming ceremony, a symbolic moment of handing over the baton between the Romanian and the Greek team, which completed its pre-positioning programme in an area adjacent to the location assigned to Romania.

On Monday morning, the command of the Romanian crew took part in the weekly meeting with the French counterparts to analyse the main risks of forest fires and to establish the organisation of the structures that ensure the response in case of such events, shows the cited source.

From July 1 to 31, the Department for Emergency Situations of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, in collaboration with the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations – DG ECHO, is participating in a pre-positioning programme, the aim being to reduce response time to forest fires, to streamline training and improve interoperability between European forces.

„Funded by the European Union, this programme is a measure of support for French communities affected by fires in recent years. The Romanian firefighters’ mission emphasises the importance of international solidarity and cooperation in managing natural disasters, contributing significantly to the protection of communities and the environment. The change of personnel will take place on July 16, and another 40 firefighters will replace them,” the press release said.

AGERPRES