A cross-border rescue service project funded by the EU offers fast and unbureaucratic help in emergencies in the Bavarian-Czech border region. This expires at the end of 2022. Angelika Schorer, President of the Bavarian Red Cross (BRK), urges a continuation. Life-saving should not stop at national borders, she said during a visit to Furth im Wald (Cham district) on Monday.
The Competence and Coordination Center for Cross-Border Rescue Services (Gü-RD) is located in the Upper Palatinate city, which regulates the operations under the leadership of the BRK – so that, for example, patients can be driven to the neighboring country without crossing the border from a Bavarian to a Czech one having to move an ambulance. In just under 150 days this year will end and with it the funding from the European Union, said Schorer. “We are still hoping for a financing commitment from the health insurance companies as the responsible cost bearers of the rescue service.” It is a successful project that urgently needs to be continued.
Among other things, the competence center offers a translation platform for emergency communication in German and Czech, operational exercises and real-time information about available rescue vehicles on both sides of the border. This will send the nearest free car to the site.
An example of cooperation between the rescue services is the train accident near Domažlice in August 2021, in which three people died and several dozen were injured, the BRK said. 40 helpers from the Cham district were involved in the rescue work in the Czech Republic.