The Rescue Association
Estonian fire and rescue teams are part of Estonian culture. In 2019, they celebrated their 100th birthday. Voluntary fire brigades were the heart of community activities in 1919, during the first Estonian independence, and still are.
Life is now different than it was a century ago in both the countryside and the city, but volunteer rescuers and their communities are still the main drivers of life all over Estonia.
On 7 September 1919, volunteer firefighting associations established a national firefighting association in the Estonia Theatre in Tallinn: the Estonian National Firefighting Association. This created a legal basis for a nationwide joint volunteer firefighting activity. Today, 7 September is celebrated as the day of Estonian firefighting. Over time, the volunteer firefighting movement has been active in many winds of change.
On 23 April 1991, 18 firefighting associations initiated the re-founding of an umbrella organisation based on the continuity principle – the Estonian Firefighting Association – and it is still active today. On 22 January 2010, the parliament (Riigikogu) founded the Rescue Association as well. It started with nineteen founding members and has now grown into an umbrella organisation comprising 120 member associations, representing land, sea, and special rescue volunteers.
The Estonian Firefighting Association and the Rescue Association co-operate to create a safer Estonia.
Cooperation between G4S Estonia and the Rescue Association began in 2018
‘G4S laid the foundation for the largest safety cooperation in Estonia, where volunteer rescuers and employees of G4S work together for a safer Estonia,’ said Kaido Taberland, Chairman of the Management Board of the Rescue Association.
If necessary, the alarm signals sent by our customers’ Nublu smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are checked by volunteer firefighters instead of a security guard, so we can be sure that assistance is provided throughout Estonia if there is a risk of fire. We reimburse volunteers for the expenses incurred in responding to a call.
‘Everyone can help to make Estonia safer. There are over a hundred volunteer rescue brigades that keep their community safe, and G4S has 75 patrols across Estonia. Together, we are able to provide faster assistance to more and more people, even in sparsely populated areas,’ said Villu Õun, Member of the Management Board and Director of the Guarding Division of G4S Estonia.
We, G4S Estonia, also became a major supporter of the Rescue Association, an umbrella organisation uniting volunteer rescuers, so that rescuers would have better opportunities to improve the safety of the community.