Within 24 hours, Croatia’s request for assistance from the EU’s Civil Protection Mechanism was almost fully met, announced Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič on Sunday 3 January, thanking the 15 countries that responded quickly to help the Member State hit by a powerful earthquake on 29 December.
Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden and Turkey immediately provided housing containers for families whose houses had been destroyed, as well as winter tents, sleeping bags, beds, and electric heaters.
The EU Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC), which operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, coordinated the assistance. The European Copernicus programme provided detailed satellite maps of the damage.
“It is EU solidarity at its best”, the Commissioner was pleased to say on his Twitter account.
On 31 December, European Commission Vice-President Dubravka Šuica and Janez Lenarčič travelled to Croatia to meet Prime Minister Andrej Plenković in Zagreb. Together with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, Davor Božinović, they then travelled to Petrinja, the most affected city.
The earthquake killed seven people and caused extensive damage to many homes and infrastructure. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)