For nearly a decade, Norwegian authorities have been encouraging citizens to prepare supplies that will allow them to function independently for at least seven days. This includes: for water, food, heating, battery-powered radio and cash.
Our research shows that nine out of ten Norwegians are aware of the authorities' recommendations, and more than half of us have stocked up on water. There is still a lot to do, but this is nevertheless a significant improvement in the preparedness of residents, said Morten Harangen, special advisor to the Norwegian Civil Protection and Emergency Planning Authority.
Alarm directly to your phone
In the event of a threat, warnings are sent directly to the phones of people staying in the affected area. The announcements may be accompanied by alarm sirens.
The message should contain information about the type of threat, its scope and recommended course of action. Depending on the situation, residents may be asked, among others: to stay in buildings, close windows and ventilation, or evacuate to an indicated place.
If the situation changes, the services may send further messages. After the alarm is canceled, residents receive appropriate information and the sirens emit a continuous signal for about 30 seconds. If telecommunications networks stop working, official announcements will be made by, among others: public radio NRK P1.
"Friend of preparedness" in times of crisis
The administration also encourages Norwegians to find the so-called beredskapsvenn, or "friend of readiness". This is a person with whom you can prepare for a crisis and support each other when everyday functioning is disrupted.
One of the key elements of preparation is knowing where to seek shelter. DSB maintains a constantly updated map of public shelters. However, it does not include private shelters intended for people staying in specific buildings or on private properties. In such a situation, the office advises contacting the property owner.
More and more people use the map of public shelters. Residents are also asking municipalities and civil defense about hiding places, said Mona Brygard from the preparedness section of the Norwegian Civil Defense Sivilforsvaret.
The authorities want to catch up
Brygard admitted that for many years too little attention was paid to informing residents about shelters and other places of hiding in case of war.
We need to catch up on informing people what shelters are, what they are for, where they are located and why they are there, she noted.
After the security situation deteriorated, municipalities and local civil defense units began to provide residents with information about shelters more intensively. One example is Lillestroem near Oslo, where the local government publishes a map of public shelters, and the website is also available in automatic translation into other languages.
One of the characteristics of a crisis is that it occurs quickly and requires immediate action. Many things have to happen at once and time is of the essence. The more a person checks and thinks in advance, the less chaos there will be when such a situation occurs, said Ketil Matvik Foldal, head of crisis preparedness in the Lillestroem commune.
The commune of Lillestroem is also preparing a system to inform residents in the event of a serious communication failure. From the end of October, six libraries are to operate as points where you can obtain information about the current situation, recommendations from the services and help from the commune.
Throughout Norway there are approximately 18,600. shelters, able to accommodate approximately 46 percent inhabitants of the country. In Oslo this rate is higher and amounts to approximately 72%.
