Porto celebrates International Civil Defence Day

The International Civil defence day is celebrated every year on 1st March, with the goal of highlighting the national civil defence services that carry out difficult and noble work to protect the population and territories from emergency situations.

National civil defence services carried out a drill at Pasteleira Basic School, in Porto, on 28 February, at 2.15 pm, to celebrate International Civil Defence Protection Day. The aim of the drill was to prepare the civilian population to protect itself in the event of emergency and to reduce the risk of disaster. The drill included the simulation of a fire and all the necessary steps that have to be taken towards a more efficient disaster management.

The school community - teachers, students and school officials - and the authorities - firefighters, police, National Republican Guard - were engaged in the drill, which was successfully carried out by the entire team that organised it.

"It is said that we are all Civil Protection, therefore, it is only natural that this kind of awareness is fostered from an early age" stated the councillor for Civil Defence for Porto City Hall, Cristina Pimentel, who also attended the drill.

Civil protection as we know it was established in 1949, under the Protocol 1 of the Geneva Treaty, to bring the attention of the world public to the importance of civil protection and to pay tribute to the work of all national civil defence services.

World Civil Defence Day was created by the decision of the ICDO General Assembly in 1990, and entered into force of the ICDO Constitution as an intergovernmental organization in 1972.