Close to the border with Russia, the Kirkenes hospital was built without shelters – NRK Troms and Finnmark

Just 6 kilometers from Norway’s border with Russia is Kirkenes Hospital.

It, too, was built without shelters – like all other new hospitals in the last 25 years. They have been exempted from the requirement, because the politicians in the 90s believed that the world had become so much safer.

But today it is no longer acceptable, says doctor Mads Gilbert, who refers to the situation in Ukraine.

He believes the lack of shelters is a breach of the Health Preparedness Act. It says that whoever is responsible for a service also has responsibility for preparing for war and disasters.

The offense is a betrayal of the population, Gilbert believes.

– In addition, there are no resources or planning to conduct realistic exercises with health personnel to prepare them for a war situation.

Attack hospital

In Ukraine, 1,500 were reported targeted attacks on hospitals, health workers and health infrastructure in the first two years after the full-scale Russian invasion. This is written by WHO director Hans Kluge.

Doctor Mads Gilbert has himself worked in several war zones, and is particularly known for his efforts in the Palestinian areas.

To build a hospital with shelters should be a matter of course with today’s world situation, says Gilbert.

– It is quite simple to preserve life when the hospital is exposed to bomb attacks or artillery fire. Then it must be possible to take patients and healthcare personnel into a shelter. But it looks like the authorities have gone to sleep, and are not following the world situation, says Gilbert.

– Those who haven’t realized that we live in a geopolitically terribly dangerous time, they haven’t been paying attention, and in any case they haven’t done their homework.

Everyone gets a dispensation

Basically, there is a requirement in Norway that new buildings that are constructed must have shelters.

But according to Mona Christensen Brygard, section chief in the Civil Defence, it is entirely possible to apply for exemption from this requirement.

– It was a decision by the Storting which decided to temporarily stop the construction of new shelters in Norway. That decision still applies. Therefore, it is not currently compulsory to build new shelters, says Brygard.

– This is a temporary suspension, so everyone must still apply for a dispensation. But we approve all these applications, says Brygard.

Researcher: – Looks strange today

Gjermund Rongved is associate professor at Høgskolen i Innlandet. He is researching total defence, i.e. the cooperation between the military and civil preparedness.

He believes that it looks as if, in the 90s after the Cold War, Norway abandoned the precautionary principle when it came to shelters.

– When you arrive in the 90s, you think that you are in a new world situation. Russia is no longer dangerous, and you can save money, says Rongved.

– It looks very strange when we come to our days, where Russia has become scarier and scarier, especially after 2022, but also partly from 2007 to 2014.

Believe in recovery

Doctor Mads Gilbert finds it strange that exemptions are still granted from the requirement for shelters in hospitals – especially in Finnmark.

The safety of patients and staff should come first, he believes.

Hammerfest’s new hospital, approved to be built in 2017, also has no shelter. Finnmarkshykehuset points out that it is in line with the national regulations.

– I think it is quite special that the two hospitals that are being built now in perhaps our most exposed area of ​​geopolitical tension, namely Finnmark, are being built without this basic war preparedness, says doctor Mads Gilbert.

Gjermund Rongved believes that the situation can improve a little when it comes to shelters in the future.

– You can well imagine that there will be a piece of legislation that says that if you are to build over such and such a large area, you must also have shelters.