A busy Advent for the Hafnarfjörður Rescue Squad

December is the busiest month for the Hafnarfjörður Rescue Squad, as it is when the biggest fundraisers take place, in addition to the regular operations and calls-outs that rarely give any advance warning. The rescue squad has a total of 505 members, a very close-knit group of people who possess the knowledge and experience needed to be always ready to respond. 183 are on the call-out list.

„Our Christmas tree sale begins right at the start of December, when the trees arrive in the country, and are usually sold at the Whalebone House by Flatahraun. It's always lively there and Father Christmases pop in to help families choose their tree. The firework sale will most likely be held at three locations: the rescue centre, the car park at Hval, and on Völlunum.“ says chairman Guðjón Rúnar Sveinsson. It is not uncommon for calls-out to also occur at this time, alongside other duties, but his people are well prepared for it. „We are well-staffed and equipped, but we always have to rely on the public to fund our operations. Fortunately, there has been a significant increase in new recruits, even though we haven't advertised for them. Hopefully, we're just attracting good people to the job.“ says Gudjón, but he himself started in this 25 years ago. 

This content is from the 2022 Hafnarfjörður Christmas magazine.