
Aid takes the form of in-kind assistance, deployment of specially-equipped teams, or experts assessing and coordinating support right in the field. When a disaster overwhelms a country’s ability to contain it, other participating states step in and provide assistance. All EU Member States, as well as Iceland, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia and Turkey are taking part in the Union Civil Protection Mechanism.
Picture: European Union Civil Protection exercise in Austria: rescue teams looking for survivors of the disaster. © European Union/ECHO/Oerk