Minister Urges Dutch Citizens to "Prepare for War" - Have Emergency Kits
Dutch Justice and Security Minister David van Weel said on Wednesday that citizens need to prepare to manage "without the central government" in case of a "real conflict."
The Dutch Justice and Security Minister David van Weel issued a recommendation on Wednesday for all citizens to compile 72-hour emergency kits in case of a natural disaster, cyber attack or war.
Netherlands residents really need to prepare themselves for a calamity. They must be able to survive on their own for 72 hours if war, a disaster, or a cyber attack paralyzes the country, Justice Minister David van Weel told local media outlets.
The government has identified five key sectors that will get priority in this time of uncertainty, he said. These are logistics, electricity, water and food, healthcare, and the government.
Until now, the government’s advice has been for Netherlands residents to have enough food and water in-house to survive 48 hours. “The commitment to civil resilience must increase,” Van Weel said to the newspaper after meeting with his EU colleagues in Brussels on Wednesday.
Van Weel would like to see Dutch people get back to the preparedness levels of the Cold War. “Back then, we knew what to do when the air raid siren went off. Citizens simply had a task to perform in case of an emergency,” Van Weel said. “After the fall of the wall, we dismantled defense and at the same time, the entire civil defense system.”
Today's words from the government are an update to existing advice to have a kit at home which lasts at least 48 hours. Items that citizens are recommended to have include cash, canned food, water and batteries.
This advice has existed for years, and a recent study by research firm Ipsos I&O shows that a quarter of the Dutch population owns an emergency kit. This is a significant increase from 2024, when just 15% of Dutch people had one.
OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, TOO
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