Around 1,000 firefighters from 20 European countries marched through Brussels on Tuesday, demanding increased recruitment, better working conditions and sustained investment in emergency services following a summer of devastating wildfires across Europe….
Around 1,000 firefighters from 20 European countries marched through Brussels on Tuesday, demanding increased recruitment, better working conditions and sustained investment in emergency services following a summer of devastating wildfires across Europe.
The demonstrators marched from Brussels-North railway station towards Tour & Taxis, where the European Civil Protection Forum was taking place.
Organised by the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU), the protest brought together firefighters in uniform, carrying national and trade union flags while chanting slogans and displaying banners highlighting occupational hazards, including cancer and suicide.
The firefighters warned that years of underinvestment had left emergency services struggling with staff shortages, inadequate equipment and growing demands arising from wildfires and other climate-related disasters.
Sebesian, a French firefighter and CFDT trade union representative, said France and other European countries no longer had enough personnel to respond effectively to fires.
“Yes, in France, as in the rest of Europe, we no longer have enough firefighters to fight fires. And we have a funding problem. We need to recruit, for example, 20,000 more firefighters in France. Across Europe, the figure is around 14,000,” he said.
He called on governments to provide additional funding for recruitment and firefighting equipment.
“In the future, we need funding. We need money to recruit more people, to have more firefighters, and to provide trucks to fight fires,” he added.
The unions argued that emergency services require sustained investment to cope with increasingly demanding operations, warning that inadequate staffing and equipment place both firefighters and the communities they protect at risk.
The demonstration followed a summer marked by destructive wildfires in several parts of Europe, intensifying calls for governments to strengthen firefighting capacity and improve emergency preparedness.
Environmental organisations, including Greenpeace Belgium, also joined the march in solidarity with firefighters, supporting demands for stronger public services and greater investment in disaster response.
The protesters urged European governments to treat firefighting as a critical public service requiring long-term funding, adequate staffing and improved protection for personnel.
