Radio România Internațional

Tag: search and rescue operations

  • February 12, 2023 UPDATE

    February 12, 2023 UPDATE

    VISIT – Bavaria’s minister-president,
    Markus Söder, will visit Romania on Monday. The German official will meet
    president Klaus Iohannis and Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă, the German Embassy
    reports. Markus Söder will also hold talks with representatives of the German
    minority in Romania and the Romanian-German Chamber of Commerce. On the
    sidelines of his meeting with Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă, the two officials
    will sign a joint statement aimed at expanding bilateral cooperation to such
    fields as national security, IT, justice, cyber security, science and research,
    economy, language, education and social.




    QUAKE -
    The death toll of the deadly February 6 earthquake exceeded 33,000 on Sunday
    and risks doubling, the UN deputy Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs,
    Martin Griffiths has warned. According to the UN official, who visited Turkey
    on Saturday, the quake has killed over 24,000 people in Turkey and over 3,500
    in Syria. The UN warns that at least 870 thousand people need warm meals in
    Turkey and Syria. Some 26 million people have been affected by the quake, the
    World Health Organization estimates. Turkey’s disaster agency says 32,000
    people from Turkish organizations are working on search and rescue efforts.
    Some 8,300 international rescuers are also contributing. On the other hand, the
    Chargé d’Affaires of the European Union to Syria, Dan Stoenescu, told Reuters
    on Sunday that the EU and Member States have raised €50 million to provide aid
    and back rescue missions and first aid in both government-held and
    rebel-controlled parts of Syria.




    RELIEF -
    The first train carrying relief materials from the EU’s reserve has left
    Bucharest and is expected to arrive on Tuesday in quake-hit Turkey. According
    to Raed Arafat, the head of the Department for Emergency Situations, the first
    transport includes 1,200 tents, 8,000 beds, 2,200 mattresses and 4,800 pillows.
    On Sunday, Romanian rescuers pulled a 35-year-old man from debris after a
    12-hour straight operation, raising the total number of people saved to 6.
    Romania has two search and rescue teams currently deployed to Turkey.
    Additionally, volunteers from Constanța, including four search and rescue
    experts with CERONAV (the Romanian Center for Training Naval Transport
    Personnel), have left to the most affected areas and joined the Turkish
    authorities in the city of Islahiye in an attempt to rescue people still
    trapped beneath collapsed buildings.




    EUROVISION – Theodor Andrei will represent
    Romania at the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest with his song D.G.T. (Off and on) after winning the national selection contest on
    Saturday night. This year’s edition of Eurovision will be hosted by Liverpool,
    UK on behalf of Ukraine, the country that won last year’s edition and which is
    currently unable to host the contest due to the war. The semi-finals are
    scheduled for May 9 and 11. Romania’s representative will compete in the second
    semi-final. The final will be held on May 13. Organized since 1956, the
    Eurovision Song Contest is one of the longest-standing and most watched TV
    programs in the world. It is broadcast to Europe, Australia, Asia and the USA.
    Romania’s best rankings in the Eurovision was third place in 2005 (Kyiv – Luminiţa
    Anghel & Sistem) and 2010 (Oslo – Paula Seling and Ovi), and fourth place
    in 2006 (Athens – Mihai Trăistariu).




    WORLD RADIO
    DAY – On World Radio Day, celebrated on February 13, Romanian artists will
    express their support with war-torn Ukraine by sending a message of hope and
    peace. Vocalists, the Radio Children’s Choir and the Radio Big Band will
    interpret the song called Heal the World,
    a reinterpretation of Michael Jackson’s famous 1991 single, written by the
    Radio Big Band conductor Simona Strungaru. The song will be aired on all Radio
    Romania stations in celebration of World Radio Day 2023.




    HANDBALL
    – The Romanian women’s handball club CSM Bucharest on Sunday lost 28-26 to Krim
    Mercator Ljubljana of Slovenia away from home in the last fixture of Champions
    League Group A. CSM thus missed the opportunity of ranking first in the group
    tables. The team has secured qualification to the quarterfinals, where it will
    play the winner of the match pitting Brest Bretagne Handball of France against
    Team Esbjerg of Denmark. Also on Sunday, in its last Group B fixture, Romanian
    champions CS Rapid Bucharest won 27-22 against RK Lokomotiva Zagreb. Rapid
    qualified to the playoffs, where it will play Krim Ljubljana. The winner of
    this match will then play the defending champions Vipers Kristiansand of Norway
    in the quarterfinals. (VP)

  • December 27, 2022

    December 27, 2022


    FLU – Over 100,000 cases of flu have been reported in Romania, particularly in children. Experts advise in favor of taking the anti-flu and anti-COVID shots, vulnerable categories in particular. Health Minister Alexandru Rafila says he expects a new wave of COVID that would result in a higher number of serious cases in Romania. A little over 3,400 people have been diagnosed with COVID, of whom 950 were reinfected.



    SEARCH – Search and rescue teams continue to look for the Ukrainian citizens who got lost on Saturday while trying to cross Maramureș Mountains. On Monday, only one person was rescued due to severe weather conditions. The authorities involved in the operation announced that two of the three Ukrainians who are still stranded are in critical condition and are located in an area that is hard to access due to rocky terrain and changing weather conditions. To retrieve them, the authorities received support from FRONTEX. A Diamond aircraft flew over the Romanian-Ukrainian border area. Made up of six people, the group of Ukrainians tried to illegally enter Romania by crossing the alpine border. Search and rescue operations were hampered after the men didn’t want to disclose their location on the first day. The Border Police says the men are aged 23-33. After Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, Kyiv authorities have called a general mobilization and decreed martial law, which forbids able men aged 18-60 from leaving the country.



    NEW YEAR – The Interior Ministry has taken special precautions to maintain public order around New Year’s Eve. 24,500 police officers, gendarmes, border police officers, firefighters and employees with other structures will be mobilized on a daily basis. Road traffic police will deploy 290 traffic radars and will test drivers for alcohol and illegal substances. The authorities expect a new wave of tourists to head to mountain resorts on Prahova Valley and have prepared special teams of mountain gendarmes.

    MOLDOVA – Moldova’s president Maia
    Sandu hailed the initiative of the Moldovan Education Ministry to provide
    free-of-charge Romanian-language classes to Moldovan adults who don’t use
    Romanian on a daily basis. Launched in 2013, the program was underfunded and
    offered classes for children only. The state budget for 2023 earmarks
    additional funds to extend the program, the Moldovan Presidency reports. The Moldovan
    Government is expected to pass a decree providing all the details of the
    program, which starting next year will be better suited to meet the Romanian
    language demands of Moldovan adults, says president Maia Sandu.



    FEAST DAY – Orthodox and Eastern-Catholic Christians today celebrate Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr, one of the deacons elected to serve in the first Christian community in Jerusalem. Stephen was accused of blasphemy by Jewish clerics and was stoned to death. Roman-Catholic Christians celebrated Saint Stephen on the second day of Christmas. Over 500,000 people celebrate their name day on this occasion.



    HANDBALL – The men’s handball teams of Romania, Egypt, Algeria and Slovakia will take part in this year’s edition of the Carpați Trophy tournament, held over December 28-29 in Oradea, the Romanian Handball Federation reports. Egypt and Algeria have secured qualification to the 2023 World Cup, to be held in January 2023. Coach Xavi Pascual has called up 24 players to the squad, which convened on Monday for training. (VP)