THW Balve starts spectacular radio exercise - 100 helpers in action!

THW Balve starts spectacular radio exercise - 100 helpers in action!

The Technical Aid Agency (THW) from Balve is preparing for a comprehensive radio operating exercise that takes place in the Sauerland on Saturday, October 12th. At this event, around 100 helpers and 20 vehicles are led by the Hochsauerlandkreis and the Märkische Kreis. The exercise starts at 10 a.m. in the accommodation of the THW in Glärbachstraße.

This large exercise, which is launched according to the challenges of Corona pandemic, attracts not only the THW own local associations, but also the Schwitten volunteer fire brigade and the DLRG Werdohl, which take part with suitable vehicles and personnel. The practitioners receive their target coordinates via radio, which they should lead to a point in the Märkisches Kreis or in the Hochsauerland. The area on which the exercise takes place is greater than the entire Saarland, which increases the challenge for the participants.

radio communication in disaster protection

One of the central tasks of this exercise is that the vehicle crews not only reach the target point, but also have to do specific tasks there. This serves not only practical experience, but also to check whether the selected point was actually achieved correctly. A control center specially set up for this purpose in the THW in Balve monitors and supports the participants throughout the exercise. The event itself should end around 10 p.m., which promises a long and intensive training day.

The idea of performing such exercises is not new. In the 1980s there were already similar events that often mobilized more than 35 vehicles from different organizations. After a successful trial run last year with its own strength, the THW would now like to build on this tradition and carry out the large exercise again annually.

The importance of radio traffic in disaster protection can hardly be overestimated; It is one of the decisive means of communication these days. In this way, the participants should not only improve their driving skills, but also learn to read cards with coordinates and to find their way around. In addition, some “sporting” challenges are planned at the destinations that help everyone involved remain active and fit throughout the day.

For more information about the event and the latest developments in the THW Balve, can be found on the website Hoennezeitung.de to be referred.