The basement at the Jānis Eglītis Preiļi State Gymnasium is one of only four facilities in the Preiļi Region that fully comply with shelter requirements. Such places are currently being identified throughout the country so that in the event of a crisis, disaster, or military threat, there is somewhere to shelter for up to 72 hours.
The premises have so far also been used by pupils as a place for active and creative leisure time. They are already equipped with a ventilation system, smoke detectors, an alarm button, and two evacuation exits. Of the 61 state and municipal facilities in the Preili Region, 54 have now been inspected.
"These premises must have access to water, sewerage, a separate air supply, and at least two exits," explained Aigars Zīmelis, Executive Director of the Preili Municipality. "13 shelters partly meet these requirements. Of these 13, some do not have water, some do not have sewerage, some do not have this second exit."
The VUGD will inspect around 4,500 objects in state and municipal buildings across Latvia until November.
By mid-August, it was found that of the 1,911 sites, about 56% of basements fully or partially meet shelter requirements and can accommodate 373,000 people.
In Latgale, 550 basements have so far been surveyed and only 100 of them could be immediately used as shelters.
Dmitrijs Karpovs, Deputy Head of the Latgale Regional Department of the State Fire Service, said that of the 90 objects surveyed in Daugavpils, 8 objects fully meet the shelter needs, 40 objects partially meet the shelter needs, and most of them do not.
Some of the buildings are located in flooding areas or have no basements at all. In the future, both the State and the municipalities need to find additional funds to clean up at least the partially compliant basements and cellars.
"In the current geopolitical situation, I think this is one of the most important tasks. What concerns water, sewage, air, electricity, exits, all of this has to be addressed," said Zīmelis. "One big problem is these flooded [areas], and when it comes to groundwater levels, I'm afraid the solutions are not that simple."
At the end of the survey, an interactive map with the location and capacity of each shelter will be published on the VUGD website and the "112 Latvija" app.
The basements will also be marked in the open, but the shelters may not be available on a daily basis if there is no risk.
