Desk for the governor

The Ministry of Emergency Situations decided to teach regional heads

The leadership of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations has come up with an unprecedented initiative - to oblige all incoming governors to undergo a special training course and certification for actions in emergency situations. Together with the government, subordinates of the country's chief rescuer Sergei Shoigu are already preparing the corresponding draft amendments to the federal law “On the protection of the population and territories from natural and man-made emergencies.” In the meantime, they have not been accepted, rescuers offer governors to study voluntarily and have already created at their base unique courses for improving “emergency” qualifications.

The leaders of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were forced to take such an extraordinary step by analyzing the cataclysms that struck the Russian regions last year - catastrophic floods in the south, widespread forest-peat fires, the collapse of a huge glacier in North Ossetia, etc. As scientists have established, in the overwhelming majority of cases, the grave consequences of emergencies - loss of life, destruction of homes, businesses and, in general, the infrastructure of the affected areas - were the result not of the disaster itself, but of the inept actions of local authorities. Officials, as it turned out, had a very vague idea of ​​how to organize even the most basic rescue work: evacuate people, create food supplies, and medical stations. The most significant in this sense was the June flood in the Southern District, which claimed the lives of 114 people.

The two-week “governor's courses” were created on the basis of the Development Institute of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation in Novogorsk near Moscow. According to the director of the institute, Vladimir Mishchenko, this is a purely voluntary matter for the heads of regions - the Ministry of Emergency Situations cannot yet force them to sit at their desks. In accordance with the law “On the protection of the population and territories from natural and man-made emergencies” adopted in 1994, rescuers can now only recommend that the governor and their deputies learn how to properly protect the entrusted territories and the population from disasters. Although, on the other hand, according to the same law, governors are now heads of local civil defense departments, and one of the vice-governors is the chairman of the commission on liquidation of emergency consequences. And the Ministry of Emergency Situations logically believes that in this status, officials are simply obliged to professionally resolve emergency issues.

The institute's management has already developed a special training program for permanently employed officials. High-ranking cadets are expected to train for two weeks with a break to go home and deal with pressing government matters. In total, officials will have to sit at their desks for 72 academic hours. During this time, the institute’s teachers promise to teach them all the intricacies of leading the region during an emergency. Students will study the characteristics of possible disasters, work out a scheme for interaction between the administration and rescue services, etc. Having passed the test, the governor will receive a certificate.

So far, the heads of regions have reacted to the initiative of the Ministry of Emergency Situations without enthusiasm and are trying to send deputies to the courses in their place. At the moment, only 12 vice-governors from Siberia have graduated from them. The training of each cost the federal budget 6 thousand rubles. In the meantime, the Development Institute of the Ministry of Emergency Situations is sharing their experience with foreigners. Groups of rescuers from Japan, France and Iraq have already completed an “extraordinary” special course there.

Alexander RASKIN