THE ORIGINS OF CIVIL PROTECTION IN SLOVENIA

Abstract

The origins of civil protection in Slovenia date back to the period between the two World Wars, when the experience of air raids away from the frontline during World War I, and especially during the Spanish Civil War, led to the need to protect the civilian population from such threats. While active anti air raid protection was the responsibility of the armed forces and involved countering such air raids, passive anti air raid protection, now known as civil protection, focused on reducing the impact of these raids on the civilian population and protecting civilians against them. It is from the latter that modern civil protection arose. Passive anti-air protection included various measures, such as blackouts, camouflage, sheltering, evacuation, firefighting, first aid, and rescue from debris, which were the responsibility of local committees. Planned training and drills were also established, and manuals and instructions were produced. This led to the establishment of a system of passive anti-air protection, which is the precursor of modern civil protection.