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MILITARY

CHECKLIST: The emergency supplies Denmark advises you to stock up on

Every household in Denmark should stock up on certain items including food and water in case a crisis hits, Danish authorities advise.

Published: 17 June 2024 13:21 CEST
CHECKLIST: The emergency supplies Denmark advises you to stock up on
Denmark's Emergency Management Service recommends enough water and other supplies for three days should a crisis occur. Photo by Jonathan Chng on Unsplash

The Danish Emergency Management Service (Beredsskabstyrelsen, DEMA) has issued advice for the general public to have certain supplies at home so that they are prepared in the event of a crisis.

Currently, the checklist on DEMA’s website is only available in Danish, so a full English translation follows below.

The general population should stock up on enough supplies to last them three days should crisis hit, according to DEMA.

DEMA also outlines the type of events that could be the cause of such situations.

These can include natural events like extreme weather or human acts like cyber attacks or sabotage.

The director of the Danish Emergency Management Service (Beredsskabstyrelsen, DEMA), Laila Reenberg, said at a briefing on the recommendations that there is no need to “rush out in panic” to purchase crisis supplies.

“But when you happen to be out grocery shopping, you can gradually fill out your supplies,” she said.

Reenberg also noted that the advice is meant as guidance and one of the reasons DEMA has produced it is in response to “increasing requests from the public”.

“We are recommending this because if people can get by for three days, authorities can focus on doing what needs to be done and work on normalising the situation as quickly as possible,” she said.

Denmark is “essentially a safe and secure country,” Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said. He stressed that there is no direct military threat to Denmark currently.

But the risk of a “hybrid attack”, which could, for example, disrupt electricity supplies is genuine according to the minister.

READ ALSO: Denmark’s population advised to stock up for ‘crisis situation’

Checklist

Water

  • 3 litres per person per day
  • Additional water for pets

Food

  • Enough for three days. Should have long expiry date and be easy to prepare

Medicine and first aid

  • All medicines needed by household members
  • First aid box
  • Iodine tablets for persons under the age of 40, pregnant and breastfeeding women

Hygiene

  • Toilet paper
  • Hand sanitiser
  • Nappies, sanitary towels/tampons and other hygiene items needed by household members

Warmth

  • Blankets, duvets, warm clothing

Other essentials

  • Power bank or battery pack for mobile telephone
  • Torch
  • Batteries
  • Bank card (remember your PIN) and some cash in notes and coins (optional)
  • Candles and matches (optional)

Special requirements to consider

  • Are there children or elderly in the household?
  • Are you vulnerable to major floods? If so, do you have alternative transport available?
  • Can you get help from family, neighbours or friends?

Communication

  • Emergency FM/AM radio that is battery/wind-up/solar powered (optionally a car radio)

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MILITARY

One in four in Denmark stocked up with ‘crisis’ water and food

A significant proportion of the Danish population has followed official advice to ensure they have enough supplies at home to get by for three days in the event of a crisis.

Published: 25 June 2024 13:40 CEST
One in four in Denmark stocked up with ‘crisis’ water and food

Around a quarter of households have stocked three days’ supplies of water after advice was issued by authorities earlier this month to keep stores in case of a crisis.

A survey for newswire Ritzau by the Voxmeter institute found that around a quarter have already followed the guidelines. Over 1,000 people answered the survey, which was conducted between 6 and 9 days after the announcement.

The Danish Emergency Management Service (Beredsskabstyrelsen, DEMA) on June 15th issued advice for the general public to have certain supplies at home so that they are prepared in the event of a crisis. This can can mean natural events like extreme weather or human acts like cyber attacks or sabotage, DEMA said.

DEMA’s director Laila Reenberg, said at a briefing on the recommendations that there was no need to “rush out in panic” to purchase crisis supplies.

“But when you happen to be out grocery shopping, you can gradually fill out your supplies,” she said.

Some 26 percent said they have sufficient stocks of both food and water, while 72 percent said they did not in the survey conducted between June 21st-24th.

Those proportions are reasonable according to an expert, who said it was not expected that the entire country would rush to supermarkets to shop for the full checklist.

READ ALSO: 

But the numbers can also be used as a guideline for authorities, said Nina Blom Andersen, specialist in Disaster and Risk Management University College Copenhagen, speaking to news wire Ritzau.

“The authorities should use it as a signpost showing that they should always be aware that there is a group they need to look after,” she said.

The survey also asked respondents if they planned to buy things on the checklist that they do not already have.

Items on the list include power banks, first aid kits and wind-up radios.

“What could change these numbers to people being better prepared at home is continued focus on the task from the media, from authorities and that people keep talking about it in their social networks, private lives and relations,” Andersen said.

Focus on the issue from local as well as national authorities could also boost uptake, she added.

Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen has said that information will be sent to all residents in Denmark by secure email “after the summer”.

Folders will also be placed at libraires and other public institutions, he said.

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