Water, food and medicine supplies to be self-sufficient for 72 hours: the EU vademecum

The EU is developing an awareness and information campaign with guidelines and advice to citizens to be self-sufficient for at least 72 hours in case of crisis or emergency.

A document is being drafted, under the aegis of the European Commission and in particular the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy EU Kaja Kallas . The strategy is based on a report by former Finnish President Sauli Niinistö. It ranges from natural disasters (floods, forest fires, earthquakes and extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change), to man-made disasters (industrial accidents, technological failures and pandemics), to hybrid threats (cyber attacks, disinformation campaigns and manipulation and interference of foreign information, sabotage of critical infrastructure), to geopolitical crises (armed conflicts, including the possibility of armed aggression against Member States).

From what has emerged, the document for population “resilience” indicates 30 key actions that should be focused on to “prepare for a broad spectrum of risks and threats”.

Among the priorities identified: protecting essential social functions; defining minimum preparedness criteria for essential services such as hospitals, schools, transport and telecommunications; improving the storage of essential equipment and materials, climate adaptation and the availability of critical natural resources such as water. Citizens should also be “encouraged” to adopt practical measures, such as maintaining essential stocks for a minimum of 72 hours in case of an emergency.

It also foresees the creation of a European crisis hub to improve integration between existing EU crisis structures and better coordinate the response.

"Today, we face a growing number of external security challenges and a growing number of hybrid attacks in our common European space. It is clear that Europe must be stronger on all fronts and at every level of society. It is always better to prevent crises than to deal with their consequences," said High Representative Kallas.  

The EU Commissioner for Crisis, Hadja Lahbib, instead recorded a video ( WATCH ) where, half-jokingly and half-seriously (more jokingly, actually), she takes out from her bag a series of objects useful in case of a crisis.

In recent days, another document was leaked, being prepared in France, with a list of measures that the population is invited to adopt to prepare for a crisis scenario. In the drafts of the pamphlet circulated in the French media, it is suggested to put together a "survival kit" containing at least six liters of water, a dozen cans of food, batteries and a flashlight, as well as medicines, including paracetamol.

(Unioneonline/lf)