What if the power goes out and 112 is unreachable? Kennemerland practices for this scenario
Safety authorities in the Kennemerland region recently practiced emergency response procedures for scenarios involving widespread power outages and the failure of the 112 emergency line. The drill utilized amateur radio networks to communicate distress calls and served as a campaign to encourage residents to maintain emergency supplies for 72-hour self-sufficiency.
The Kennemerland safety region recently conducted a large-scale emergency drill to test protocols for prolonged power outages where the 112 emergency service is unreachable. The exercise featured the transformation of the Heemstede town hall into an emergency support station, where citizens could report urgent incidents. Due to the simulated network failure, these requests for help were relayed to a coordination center at the Velsen-Zuid fire station using radio equipment operated by amateur radio enthusiasts. The scenarios included various urgent medical and public safety emergencies to test communication workflows.
Heemstede Mayor Falgun Binnendijk highlighted the importance of this drill, emphasizing that residents should be prepared to be self-reliant for at least the first 72 hours of a crisis. Officials are encouraging members of the public to assemble emergency kits containing food and water to improve community resilience. The exercise serves as a practical reminder of the necessity for personal preparedness to ensure safety when standard public infrastructure is compromised during a disaster.
Based on reporting by rss. Translated and condensed by LocalHeadlines.
