The Order of Malta Relief Corps in Romania (Serviciul de Ajutor Maltez în România), together with the Polish Relief Corp, co-organised the training and simulation exercise in a beautiful area outside the village of Repedea, only a few hundred meters from the border with Ukraine.
Teams from Romania, Ukraine, Poland, Ireland, and Italy joined together to participate in simulations of different serious accidents through the two-day exercise, on 13 and 14 September 2024. These scenarios were masterfully put together by the team from the Relief Corps branch in Baia Mare. They were further supported by local volunteer firefighters from Poienile de Sub Munte, who also joined in the exercises with their equipment and expertise.
This was the second edition of the exercise, where the first was held in Poland in 2023, which was led by the team of the Polish Hospitaller, Dr. Marcin Swierad. Last year’s exercise resulted in a joint paper produced by the Polish team, Malteser International, and Ivo Graziani, Chief of Cabinet of the Grand Hospitaller.
Those reflections inspired the second edition in Romania and confirmed how rescue and emergency first esponse activities are part of the ‘genetic makeup’ of the Order, and that developing and sharing experiences among our Relief Corps is of paramount importance. It also highlighted that the Order should continue to develop activities based on volunteers as the backbone of the Relief Corps, enhancing capabilities and interoperability.
During the first day of the exercise, volunteers from five different countries were asked to work together in a joint effort. This was a great challenge involving not only linguistic barriers but also the need to blend diverse operational procedures, enhancing confidence, knowledge, and interoperability skills of the first responders. The simulations were extremely carefully and impact-fully laid out, and the pouring rain throughout the day added realism to the complex rescue challenges.
Each team brought a different approach to the cases and to internal communication in emergency, time and resource constrained, situations. The final contest, organised between national teams, was won by the Ukrainian Relief Corps, with the Irish team coming in second place.
Regarding the exercises, Ambassador of the Order of Malta to Romania, HE Roberto Musneci stated, “Hosting this event in Romania proved an excellent opportunity for our Embassy to witness the power of teamwork within the Order. We proudly saw the Italian team working with the Ukrainian volunteers, while the Irish were agreeing an approach with our Polish paramedics.” He added, “I am also thrilled to say that the team from Ukraine won the competition, which was hard-earned and well-deserved. While they have now returned home to Ivano-Frankivsk after these days of intense training, I am proud that they also a chance to experience some much-needed relaxation, solidarity, and friendship.”
The Embassy wishes to express thanks to Father Vasile Kolopelnik for leading the prayers and spiritual part of the exercise. Furthermore, deep appreciation goes to the President and the General Director of the Relief Corps in Romania, Mr Mihaly Denes and Mr Ferenc Tischler, as well as to Erika Laszlo and the whole team in Baia Mare for their immense work in organising the event. Thanks also go to Marcin Swierad, the Mayor of Repedea, the Representative of the Regional Council of Maramureș, the volunteers firefighters of Poienile de Sub Munte, and all the teams and other Order volunteers who made the event such a success.
The Embassy hopes that future exercises will be extended with the participation of more countries, leading to a structured sharing of experiences in first aid and emergency situations with other countries and other branches of our Relief Corps in Romania.
