WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish fire services are checking the condition of the country’s bomb shelters and compiling an inventory, a deputy minister said on Monday, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
While NATO member Poland has reassured citizens that its place in the alliance guarantees their safety from Russian attack, events in neighbouring Ukraine have brought into focus the need to be prepared for the possibility of a missile strike.
“We have 62,000 such facilities across the country,” Deputy Interior Minister Maciej Wasik told private broadcaster Polsat News.
“Firefighters are checking their condition, whether they are equipped, and whether they are fit for use. If not, we will take steps to adapt them.”
Wasik said Poland was not under threat, but was preparing for the worst-case scenario.
“These are routine activities,” he said. “This action was planned some time ago.”
The process of checking the shelters will last two months.
(Reporting by Alan Charlish, editing by Ed Osmond)
