New Guide Against Crises from Belgium: 'We Are Ready Together'

The National Crisis Center has published new guidance explaining how to act in a variety of scenarios, from floods and storms to heat waves and wildfires, from hybrid attacks to toxic risks.

The guide called "We Are Ready Together", published by the National Crisis Center under the coordination of the Belgian Ministry of Internal Affairs, contains many practical suggestions, from accessing accurate information in times of crisis to emergency contact numbers, from preparing an emergency kit at home to how to protect against toxic risks.

'AWARENESS' CALL FROM THE MINISTER OF INTERIOR

In his statement at the launch of the guide, Minister of Internal Affairs Bernard Quintin emphasized that individual preparation is now a part of national security policy. Quintin said, “What is well prepared is better preserved.

"One should not panic, but one should never be naive," he said, calling for both calm and awareness. The guide also aims to reduce information pollution in times of crisis and enable citizens to turn to reliable sources.

BE-ALERT WARNING SYSTEM WAS INTRODUCED ON THE TEST DAY

The publication of the guide coincides with the BE-Alert national testing day, which takes place in Belgium every year on the first Thursday of October. This year's testing was supported by a large-scale exercise involving 260 municipalities and provincial and regional institutions.

The exercise aimed to test how effectively the BE-Alert system works in a real emergency and how citizens react to the alerts sent. As part of the test, emergency warning messages were sent to citizens' mobile phones via SMS.

CITIZENS ARE ESSENTIALLY ABLE TO BE SELF SUFFICIENT FOR 72 HOURS.

The Crisis Center states that the guide is not only an information tool, but also aims to create a "culture of resilience" in society. In a period when climate-related risks such as floods and storms increase and energy and infrastructure security come to the fore more frequently, citizens' ability to be self-sufficient for 72 hours is now seen as one of the basic elements of the national strategy.

With this new guide, Belgium aims to modernize emergency communication, enable the public to react faster and more accurately in times of crisis, and strengthen coordination with local governments. The digital version of the guide was also published openly and accessible to all citizens. In an environment where hybrid attacks are on the agenda, the publication of this guide attracted attention.