Meeting of the Commission on Directive No. 1: Main focus on the work of prevention entities to eliminate emergencies and loss of life from external causes

On February 2, 2021, a meeting of the commission for the implementation of the requirements of Directive of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 1 of March 11, 2004 "On measures to strengthen public safety and discipline" was held at the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee.

The main attention was paid to the work of prevention entities in eliminating emergency situations and deaths from external causes, preventing fires, as well as to the measures taken to ensure safety in organizations of the Vitebsk region.

The Chairman of the Committee for Labor, Employment and Social Protection of the Regional Executive Committee, A.N. Khristoforov, reported that a unified approach has been formed in the Vitebsk region on the main areas of official activity, which includes public, transport, fire, and industrial safety.

The dynamics of a decrease in the number of registered crimes, road traffic accidents, suicides, and alcohol poisonings are maintained. The level of fatal industrial injuries has been reduced by half. Over 5 years, the number of workplaces with harmful and dangerous working conditions has decreased by 7 percent.

At the same time, the number of people who died in fires and as a result of drowning has increased.

The issue of conducting mandatory preliminary and periodic medical examinations remains relevant. In 2020, based on their results, general diseases were detected in 64 percent of cases, and a diagnosis was established for the first time in almost 10 thousand cases.

In execution of Decree No. 3, the work of 26 standing commissions for promoting employment of the population was intensified in our region.

On the social protection line, prevention of deaths in fires among lonely and single-person households is carried out.

Employees of the Territorial Center for Social Services are part of the inspection commissions of district executive committees. In 2020, as part of annual inspections, more than 29.6 thousand categorized citizens were checked.

More than 50 thousand citizens (about 40 thousand households) were inspected as part of the work of inspection commissions.

According to I.V. Svirgunov, Deputy Chief Physician of the Vitebsk Regional Clinical Center for Psychiatry and Narcology, the incidence of addictive disorders has decreased by 6 percent, and chronic alcoholism by 6.9 percent.

The number of alcohol and other psychoactive substance use incidents among children has decreased by 18 percent.

The mortality rate from alcohol poisoning has been reduced by almost 10 percent, including by 7.7 percent among the working-age population.

D.V. Zyatev, Deputy Head of the Public Security Police Department, reported that drunkenness continues to be among the most common negative social phenomena in society.

The widespread availability of alcohol negatively affects preventive measures and does not allow for a fundamental change in the antisocial behavior of certain categories of citizens. In 2020, 88 percent of murders and 93 percent of intentional grievous bodily harm incidents were committed while intoxicated.

The measures taken for individual preventive impact have managed to stabilize the operational situation in this area of operational and service activities. The number of crimes committed while intoxicated has decreased by 10.2 percent, including by 10.4 percent in the criminal investigation department.

At the same time, there has been an increase in intentional grievous bodily harm, fraud, and vehicle theft committed while intoxicated.

There are claims against a number of enterprises and organizations where labor discipline is not at the proper level. Incidents of alcohol consumption and being intoxicated at workplaces are detected, especially in the agro-industrial complex.

According to A.V. Gavrilenko, First Deputy Head of the Regional Emergency Management Department, a set of joint actions by various authorities has reduced the number of fires. However, the situation this year is developing

not in the best way in terms of the number of civilian casualties. In 2020, 106 people died – an increase of 32.5 percent or 26 cases. The statistics could have been worse if the Ministry of Emergency Situations employees had not managed to rescue and evacuate 219 people.

A.V. Gavrilenko is convinced that the potential for joint actions to prevent fires is far from exhausted, in particular, it is necessary to increase the effectiveness of the work of inspection commissions.

Chairman of the commission O.S. Matskevich emphasized that much has been done since the Directive No. 1 came into force. This work must be carried out daily and systematically, because the life and health of people depend on it. The commission's decision outlines a number of practical measures aimed at the strict implementation of the requirements of Directive No. 1 of the President of the Republic of Belarus, and the Action Plan of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee for the implementation of the provisions of Directive No. 1 for 2021 has been approved.