“SEA-2000” EXERCISE

Abstract

Accidents at sea are not a frequent occurrence, at least not as frequent as accidents in road or railway traffic, which occur practically on a daily basis. However, from the aspect of response, protection, rescue operations, assistance and the elimination of all consequences, accidents at sea are by all means larger and more complex events. The Slovene sea is not and cannot be immune to such disasters, although this type of accident has not yet occurred in Slovenia or in its vicinity. Eight years ago, a “Sea-92” Exercise was conducted in the Slovene sea, with similar goals and objectives as the “Sea-2000” Exercise. Several novelties and changes that have been introduced in recent years have called for the organization of a new exercise. The purpose of the exercise was primarily to assess and verify the current state of the response system’s organization and the ability of forces and equipment to effectively respond to accidents at sea. A new National Plan of Protection Against and Response to Accidents at Sea has been adopted, and a number of change have been in the organizational structure of public services and state bodies to ensure their coordinated action in case of such disasters. The “Sea-2000” Exercise exposed certain deficiencies that need to be eliminated in future.