Volunteer Fire Brigades on guard for the environment

Volunteer Fire Brigades on guard for the environment

12.12.2025

On November 14th in Depułtycze Królewskie (Lubelskie Voivodeship), as many as 32 Volunteer Fire Units (OSP) from neighbouring communes received essential equipment designed to help them respond more rapidly and effectively to crises. The Association of Local Governments of Euroregion “Bug” initiated this undertaking and leads the FireFighters project in partnership with the Association of Volunteer Fire Departments of Ukraine from the Volyn Oblast.

The OSP units received modern equipment – sludge pumps, floating pumps, and power generators. It is worth emphasising that this is the first of three planned equipment deliveries under the project.

We are convinced that this equipment is essential to effectively respond to all threats related to climate change and to react in the face of natural disasters. Upcoming tenders will involve the purchase of items such as flat-bottomed boats, equipment necessary for water rescue, backpacks for extinguishing grass and forest fires, and chainsaws, – explained Galina Grabarczuk, Director of the Secretariat of the Euroregion “Bug” Association.

This is quite a specific area. The so-called tripoint. This support is vital to us, as we wouldn’t be able to raise the necessary funds to acquire such equipment on our own. It will certainly be helpful during operations organised around water and the damage that the Bug River can cause. Our unit received a sludge pump, thanks to which we will be able to drain basements effectively, for example. Farm buildings are sometimes located in terrain that is difficult to access and exposed to various types of threats, –emphasised Artur Zalewski from OSP Stawki in an interview with us.

The main goal of the FireFighters project is to prevent crises within the Lubelskie Voivodeship and the Rivne Oblast. The partners will jointly develop standards for monitoring, warning, and responding to natural disasters. Under the project, training sessions and study visits regarding crisis management and first aid will be conducted. Each partner will purchase necessary equipment, including boats, water rescue kits, specialised clothing, or the aforementioned motor pumps and generators. On the Polish side, 38 OSP units will be equipped, and on the Ukrainian side, 16. An educational campaign will be conducted in parallel.

More information about the FireFighters project can be found at the link.