site.btaUPDATED Bulgaria Marks World First Aid Day

Bulgaria marked World First Aid Day on Saturday under the theme "First Aid and Climate Change". It has been celebrated since 2000 on the second Saturday of September at the suggestion of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, initially as European First Aid Day, and since 2003 as World First Aid Day in recognition of the contribution of Red Cross and Red Crescent volunteers who save lives without distinction based on gender, ethnicity, race, age, or education. 

In Bulgaria, World First Aid Day has been marked since 2003. The motto for 2025 is related to saving lives in a changing climate, with an emphasis on the link between first aid and climate change, and the campaign is aimed at how extreme weather and environmental changes shape the way people prepare for and respond to emergencies.

In Sofia, World First Aid Day was be marked with several events. At specially designated points in the garden of the National Palace of Culture, volunteers from the Bulgarian Red Cross Youth - Sofia and the Youth Emergency Team presented their activities. Guests at the event learned techniques for responding to various minor and life-threatening conditions, experienced the effects of alcohol on the senses through "alcohol goggles," drew, and participated in games. There was also a simulation of first aid in an accident between a cyclist and a pedestrian.

An exhibition of posters entitled "First Aid" gives Sofia residents and visitors to the city the opportunity until September 19 to look at first aid through the creative eyes of students majoring in Poster and Visual Communication at the National Academy of Art - Sofia and its Burgas branch. The exhibition at the Cabana Cinema open-air gallery is a joint initiative of the Bulgarian Red Cross, the National Academy of Art, and Sofia Municipality.

At noon, all attendees joined hands and formed the traditional "first aid human chain" for this day. In this way, they expressed their gratitude and respect to all volunteers and people who have been trained to provide first aid and have helped in emergency incidents or participated in various humanitarian programmes.