Crisis, Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Legislation, Post Office, Society, Transport

It must be taken into account in a crisis that the number of people in need of assistance will grow, which is why help will take longer to reach those in need. For that reason, it is crucial that each household should be able to manage on its own for a while under extraordinary circumstances.

The Rescue Board publishing said guidelines is not indicative of the authority having information of any imminent crises. Recent years have shown, however, that crises indeed occur in Estonia; for instance, in October last year, an extensive storm left some 60,000 households without power in southeastern Estonia, turning people's daily life upside down. In January 2019, an extensive power outage hit the Saaremaa island. 15 years ago, the entire western coastline of Estonia along with the islands were flooded in a storm in January. 

"Crises need not be feared, but we need to be prepared for them," head of the Rescue Board's civil protection and prevention office Viktor Saaremets said. He recommended that people think through how to act in extraordinary situations, how to assist their elderly next of kin and ensure they have a sufficient supply of food, water, medicines and essential products. One's neighbors should also be included in the preparations, he said.

"The guidelines to be delivered to people's homes will provide instructions on how to prepare for a crisis and give an overview of the types of crises that may alter our daily lives," Saaremets noted.

"When it comes to crises, various vital as well as amenity services may be disrupted -- we may end up not having any power or electricity, there may be a flood, or for some reason, our roads may have become impassable. That, in turn, will create a need for food and water supplies and information," Saaremets said.

A survey carried out by the Rescue Board at the end of 2019 showed that just 15 percent of Estonia's residents deem their crisis preparedness level sufficient and merely 35 percent consider it possible that a crisis may arise in their area of residence. Residents of West and South Estonia are best prepared for a possible emergency, whereas residents of North Estonia, non-ethnic Estonians and the elderly would fare least well in a crisis.

The guidelines for crisis preparedness will be delivered to the mailboxes of 532,000 households within the next couple of months. The instructions will be provided in Estonian, Russian and English. The relevant information is also available on the "Ole valmis!"  ("Be prepared!" in Estonian) mobile app and on the website www.olevalmis.ee .