BRANDWEERZONE WAASLAND

The Beveren Fire and Rescue Service is part of the Brandweerzone Waasland. The service operates in the north east of the province of East Flanders, including part of the Port of Antwerp. About 50.000 citizens and many large industries can count on the fire service. The force pays a lot of attention to prevention as well for both citizens and professionals in business.

Fire and rescue service Beveren operates on the left bank of the Port of Antwerp with four nuclear power plants and the largest container dock in the world within its boundaries. Currently the largest sea lock in the world is being built here, generating more container traffic and more transport of chemicals as well. The road and railroad network will be extended as well. A challenging region for the fire service, one can say. About 40 professionals and 60 volunteers are well trained to fight possible incidents. The men and women are currently based in stations in Beveren and Kieldrecht. Soon an new station will be operational within the port area.

MIRG EX is an international joint partnership. Safety Region Zeeland (NL), which brings together crisis management, fire fighters and medical assistance, is lead partner. The other partners in the project are: the Fire Brigades of Antwerp, Beveren and Ghent (BE). These brigades are linked to important international ports, that accommodate large chemical production plants. Being able to effectively fight fires on board ships is simply essential. In addition to the fire brigades, the Federal Organisation of Public Civil Assistance in Brugge, the Agency for Maritime and Coastal Services-Shipping Assistance Division and the Maatschappij van de Brugse Zeehaven nv (Zeebrugge Port Authority) are partners in the MIRG-EX project. The French Service départemental d’incendie et de secours de Pas-de-Calais and the English Kent Fire and Rescue Service complete the partnership. Both are confronted with heavy traffic on the Channel and the North Sea. An incident may be just around the corner, but this doesn’t mean it can be easily reached let alone be dealt with. Working with similar teams on both shores, reduces will help to reduce response time.