WEBVTT

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Welcome
to today's statement.

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Commander of Civil Protection
Srečko Šestan signed an order

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for the Ministry of Health
in cooperation with NIJZ

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to begin, from Wednesday onward,
the organisation and coordination

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of providing psychological
and social assistance

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to the residents of affected areas
and displaced residents.

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The Ministry and NIJZ must provide
at least seven teams

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consisting of a psychologist,
social workers,

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a qualified nurse,
a representative of the Red Cross,

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Karitas
or another local NGO,

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and, if needed, a representative of
the fire department, army or police.

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Civil Protection psychologists
and volunteer psychologists

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are already in the areas.

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More on this
by the Civil Protection's head

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of the Psychological Assistance unit
Barbara Čibej Žagar.

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But first some information
on infections.

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In Koroška there are no cases
of serious intestinal infections

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that require
medical attention.

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NIJZ is monitoring
the situation closely

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and is advising people to follow
all hygiene recommendations

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and volunteers in the field
to be healthy

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with no signs
of infectious diseases.

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Mrs. Barbara Čibej Žagar,
go ahead.

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Greetings. Today we had
a meeting with Civil Protection,

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representatives
of the Ministry of Health,

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NIJZ, the Red Cross,
the police and the army.

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We agreed that on Wednesday,
August 16th 2023,

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the organisation of providing
psychological assistance

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to residents
of affected areas,

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meaning mainly the regions
of Koroška, Savinja, Kamnik

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and other affected areas,

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be taken over
by the Ministry of Health and NIJZ.

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NIJZ will coordinate
expert teams in the field,

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a psychologist,
social worker, nurse,

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Red Cross representative
and a mobile psychiatrist,

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who will provide psychological
and social assistance in the field.

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So far, psychological assistance
has been organised

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by the Civil Protection's
Psychological Assistance unit.

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Together with psychologists,
who volunteered

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through the Slovenian
Psychologists' Association

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and the Slovenian
Chamber of Clinical Psychologists,

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we made more than 100 interventions
since Sunday, August 6th,

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with residents
who have had traumatic experiences

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due to the floods and related
incidents, mainly landslides.

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We provided
psychological assistance

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to more than
300 people in the field.

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Assistance is currently organised
in Črna na Koroškem, Prevalje,

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Ljubno ob Savinji and the wider
Kamnik and Mozirje areas.

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We know
that people in affected areas will,

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in addition to material
and financial aid,

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keep needing
psychological assistance

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and that many cases of distress
in traumatised individuals

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will manifest
a week or a month later.

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The Ministry of Health
and NIJZ

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will be be providing this
assistance from Wednesday onward.

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I would like to thank everyone
who is working in the field,

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psychologists,
firefighters,

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army and police members
and medical workers

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who have contributed
to helping people

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and will keep providing help
to those who still need it.

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Neighbourly assistance
is currently also truly invaluable.

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Support each other and stand
by each other's side. Thank you.

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Thank you,
on to questions. Go ahead.

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Lea Majcen, STA.
You mentioned the Red Cross,

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are you also
cooperating with Karitas?

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How will you reach
those who require assistance?

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Do they have to come forward
or is there some other way?

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As said, from Wednesday onwards
this coordination

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will be taken over by the National
Institute of Public Health,

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which will be providing
teams of experts.

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The information
on who needs assistance

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often comes from
firefighters in the field,

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sometimes the residents
ask for it themselves.

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There are various ways
of gathering information

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on who requires assistance
and where.

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Could you describe
those traumatic experiences?

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What do those residents require
from people who come to help?

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First and foremost they require
material and financial aid,

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followed closely by someone
who would listen to them.

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Someone who understands their
distress and can comfort them,

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as well as explain
that they have gone

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through a very severe
traumatic experience

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and that all reactions,

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be it anxiety, fear
or even physical symptoms,

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are a completely normal response
to an abnormal event.

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This event can be classified
as traumatic by any criteria.

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You were also in the field,
what affected you the most?

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We were touched
by many things.

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Mainly people who tell us
all of the things they lost

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and how they fear the future.

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A lady said that they fear
the coming normality the most,

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because
all of the distress stays.

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The emergency teams
will slowly withdraw

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and people will be left
alone with their distress.

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They will still need
a lot of assistance,

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Slovenia must not
forget about them. -Thank you.

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Thank you. We also pledge
not to forget about them.

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Sandi Curk, Commander of the Civil
Protection's Notranjska office,

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informed us that there were around
12 000 people in the field today

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who applied through
the <i>Poplave 2023</i> app.

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We do not have
a precise number yet.

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90 work orders were issued

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for groups that consisted
of 30 to more than 100 people,

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and 2000 more to those
with buildings in the area.

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Help in those areas will be needed
for a long time, perhaps years.

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We all hope that
our assistance will be successful.

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Thank you, that concludes
our press conference.

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Thank you, goodbye.