Technical Rescue Unit in Iceland
On the first day, the volunteers were briefed on the aftermath of the recent Grindavik disaster. A ghost town, it was home to 2,900 people before the eruption, but today only 4 households live there. We learned about the dangers, the aftermath of the disaster and, most importantly, how the large-scale evacuation is done - how to get people out of the town in the shortest possible time and find new places to live with the help of the state.
The second day started at Laugarvatn, where we got an overview of the importance of Starlink in volunteer rescue. Starlink is an indispensable helping hand for the local rescuers, which helps to keep connection anytime and anywhere. Next, we visited the Selfossi town rescue station, where the volunteer rescue, police, ambulance and fire brigades work in one building. Diversified expertise is an important part of the job for locals, which is why, due to the shortage of calls, firefighters also do ambulance work. In Selfoss, we also got to know the local cultural life, the rescuers' favourite place - the ice-cream shop.
Gulfoss (the rapids), near the town, is a favourite spot for tourists to take pictures. The biggest problem for Icelandic volunteers is the number of tourists who are killed or injured precisely because they overestimate their own abilities and lack a real sense of safety. Because the rapids are so powerful and so large, there is only doom if you fall in, so volunteers know where the bodies tend to congregate.
We started the third day at the historic waterfall, which is now sharing its beauty thanks to a landslide centuries ago. The project gives the members of the unit the opportunity to learn about the culture and exchange experiences, and we learned that in the old days the kos was the site of executions of convicts (mostly women). During the day, we explored the city of Reykjavik and visited Iceland's largest rescue unit.
At the Reykjavik Volunteer Rescue Unit we again discussed the events in Grindavik and how Iceland is prepared to face such situations. In addition, the chief of the local fire brigade gave us an insight into the large forest and landscape fires in Iceland, which have become increasingly frequent due to Iceland's rapid flora development and warmer climate. We were shown around the Reykjavik Fire Brigade, where once again a Red Cross ambulance and firefighters and policemen were paired up - cohesion and cooperation are extremely important in Iceland.
The fourth day was a practical field exercise on the glacier. We hiked to the Solheimajökull glacier to learn about the nature of glaciers, their dangers and, most importantly, how to rescue people from ice. After a long hike, we arrived at the foot of the glacier hole, where members of the technical rescue team were able to descend to see for themselves the rivers flowing through the thick ice. Belt rescue is a common practice in Iceland, so our volunteers were able to learn about how belt rescue is carried out and the techniques and tools used.
The fifth day took us to the Vestmannaeyjar Islands, where we spent the whole weekend. In the midst of powerful waves, we arrived on a windswept Atlantic island where a volcanic eruption 50 years ago caused a massive humanitarian crisis. On the very first day, we met a member of the local volunteer rescue team on duty, who briefed us on the dangers in the area and the activities of both land and sea rescue.
It was on the island of Vestmannaeyjar that Icelandic volunteer rescue began in 1913, starting as a volunteer sea rescue service and then developing into a multi-faceted land and sea rescue organisation, with volunteer rescue units springing up all over Iceland. Our members of the Technical Rescue Unit were honoured to be in the building of the historic organisation, sitting at the table with people whose fathers and grandfathers founded an organisation more than a century old, which is today one of Iceland's most respected associations.
While on the island, we also visited the Eldheimar Museum, which told the story of the 1974 eruption. The museum is built around a house carved out of the rocks, an example of how fragile local life is. The volcano, which erupted over a period of six months, caused the island to increase in size by a third and destroyed half of the town at the time, creating one of the biggest humanitarian crises in Iceland. Nonetheless, the locals moved back to the town and resumed their lives on the now even larger island.
The long weekend included a mountain hike to the volcano rim as well as a visit to the local cultural life. We visited the local fire brigade, where the Red Cross ambulance and firefighters were again working together. The weekend was made even more special for the technical rescue unit's sea rescue team with a lifeboat trip around the local islands, where we got to know Iceland's sea rescue capabilities and the incidents they encounter. The volunteers of the Rescue Union were amazed that the Icelandic rescue service responds to incidents at any time, in any weather, in any wind and at any height of the waves - lives need to be saved and all that is needed is skill and professional equipment.
The volunteers of the Salvation Union would like to thank the volunteers of Landsbjörg for an instructive and awesome week!
Volunteer rescuers from Iceland and Estonia are taking part in the Nordplus experience mobility project, which aims to exchange knowledge and skills on various rescue topics. In August, 10 Icelandic volunteers visited Estonia for forest and wildland fire training. For the Estonian volunteers it's important to learn from their Icelandic counterparts about rescue in difficult conditions.
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