Luxembourg’s fire and rescue services, the CGDIS, said it responded to 27% fewer calls linked to road accidents last year as a result of the pandemic.

Presenting its annual report on 29 June, the CGDIS said it received 413,619 calls last year but only around a quarter (59,721) resulted in the CGDIS dispatching fire and rescue personnel to the scene.

In most cases (47,258) the CGDIS provided rescue to people, for example in a medical emergency. This included the transport of covid-19 patients. The CGDIS also responded to 2,187 fires and 1,358 road accidents.

The CGDIS relies heavily on volunteer firefighters, who are also trained as ambulance technicians, with more than 3,800 volunteers supporting around 590 professional firefighters.

The CGDIS plans to recruit around 60 firefighters starting 1 July. Candidates must speak Luxembourg’s three official languages, German, French and Luxembourgish. By 2025, the CGDIS wants to recruit 265 more staff with the aim to respond to emergencies within 15 minutes in 90 to 95% of cases. Last year, it met this target for 87% of emergencies.

Luxembourg’s transport ministry in May also reported a decline in road accidents reported to police by 20%. However, accidents were more fatal with 26 deaths compared to 22 the year before.