Fire and rescue chief: people often read only the first line of warnings

Mārtiņš Baltmanis, a general and the head of Latvia's State Fire and Rescue Service (VUGD), pointed to a problem in informing the public during crises. Speaking on the TV24 programme “Uz līnijas”, he said that when people receive urgent alerts about natural disasters or other threats, they often read only the first line and ignore the rest, which explains what action to take. This can affect their safety, since the necessary steps are set out in the later text.

The first line is not enough

Baltmanis explained that early warning systems, including cell broadcast (alerts sent to mobile phones), are designed to grab attention immediately and provide basic initial information. To stay safe, however, residents need to read the whole message and follow the guidance it contains.

“It really is a problem, because people read the first line: ‘Orange warning!’ ‘Air raid alert!’ and that’s it, but you have to read further,” the head of the service said.

Military exercises and access to information

He also stressed that rapid early warning differs from planned activities such as military exercises. Baltmanis rejected criticism voiced publicly about a lack of information during exercises, saying that news about them is always published in good time in the media and on social networks.

People can also find information themselves with an internet search, for example if they see military vehicles and do not understand what is happening. The VUGD chief called on the public to be more proactive and use search engines to clarify a situation, rather than relying only on emergency notifications.