1. CAUGHT IN
THE EYE OF A
HURRICANESouth Sudan had their hopes set up for the
celebration of their fifth year as an independent
state. Those hopes were soon crushed.
F
ast forward to Sunday, the
nightmare has just begun. A
shot is heard in the capital city
of Juba, abruptly breaking the
morning silence sending shivers down
the spine of a thousand people caged in
the heart of the violence. Still trapped
in precarious shelters with nothing to
do and nowhere else to go, dozens
of people battle hunger, swarms of
mosquitoes and fear for their lives, but
they know it is not over yet. They know
that the peace they were promised is
crumbling right in front of their eyes.
Not far from Juba, six engineer
consultants working in South Sudan for
one of Falck Global Assistance’s (FGA)
Danish customers are well aware of the
horror that is unfolding in the nearby
city. They must get out of the country.
Now!
Still holding on to a hint of serenity
thinking they are in a safe distance from
the hurricane of violence, the situation
escalates. Realising that their lives are
about as safe as a ticking time bomb,
they take refuge in a nearby UN camp.
Back in Denmark, Søren Boss Hegner
Rasmussen, Global Security Manager
at FGA, is mobilising all forces - putting
every ounce of energy into getting
a flight in over the borders of South
Sudan to rescue the six expats.
Maybe you are now thinking: how
hard can it be? In this situation, very,
very hard.
About 120 kilometres east of Juba
you find the city of Torit where the
governor of the Sudanese state Eastern
Equatoria lives. Every expat working in
South Sudan must visit the governor
and sign an agreement stating that they
will return to the country when peace
is restored before they are allowed to
leave. Not a problem. FGA’s security
partner just has to ensure safe travels
through the hostile environment to
Torit and our six expats can board
the airplane waiting to take them to
safe grounds. But we are missing an
important point: any airplane arriving
to- and leaving South Sudan must
stop by Juba to receive the needed
permits to land. An important point
that this airplane had missed. Stuck in
Torit without an airplane, in a state of
uncertainty and back to square one, the
short-lived serenity had turned into fear.
Escaping terror
Heavy clouds cover the sun as darkness
falls over the city. FGA has managed
to get our six expats into safety in a
secured hotel in Torit and now all they
can do is wait, and put their lives in the
hands of Søren and his team back in
Denmark.
But the good news is not far away.
Through their extensive network, FGA
found an airplane that was to arrive the
first thing the following morning. This
good news would turn out to be very
short-lived. The ceasefire enforced in
Juba has been violated and the airport
has been shut down.
Steve Evans
By Sofie Henriksen
PAGE 4 FALCK HELP SEPTEMBER 2016

2. No one can get in or out of the country. The
expats are stuck - stuck in the eye of the hurricane
of violence. Just as the last drop of hope is
draining away, FGA successfully gets a licensed
airplane to Torit the morning after. Navigating
through the many checkpoints manned by unruly,
trigger-happy soldiers, FGA’s security partner
ensures safe transport to the airport where all hell
has broken loose. Escorted through the maze of
an overcrowded and chaotic landing strip, the six
expats depart unsafe grounds and are flown into
safety in Kampala, Uganda.
When FGA flexes its safety muscle
This case embodies much of what Falck Global
Assistance is all about – helping companies ensure
the safety of their employees abroad.
What the story does not tell us is that right
before the fights escalated in Juba, FGA was
preparing their trip to the region, bringing in a
thorough evacuation plan as a preventive action
against the unfold of a very hostile and dangerous
environment.
As nobody could have predicted the sudden outbreak of
violence that day, on July 10, FGA was forced to carry out
the evacuation plan without a test run. Trying to solve a
complex maze of many different actors and communication
lines in a race against time, while knowing that six people’s
lives on another continent are depending on you, is in
modest terms an extremely difficult task. Nonetheless, that
was what FGA successfully accomplished.
When reconciliation has been restored, the six expats
plan to return to South Sudan, but this time things will be
different. FGA takes no chances. They are currently doing an
extensive evaluation of the social and political environment
in the region, in addition to an advanced evacuation scheme
that will ensure the safety of their client’s employees.
Making sure that global travellers and expatriates feel in
safe hands.
Five of the six expats after arriving safely in Kampala, Uganda. They are in a
good spirit despite what they just went through.
Civilians are caught in the middle of the war between the two opposing
troops that has violated the ceasefire in Juba.
Following two
years of civil
war where tens
of thousands
of people were
killed, president Salva Kiir signed a peace
agreement with rebel leader and former
vice president, Riek Machar on August
26, 2015, who was sworn back to Juba
and re-appointed.
Despite the alleged peace between the
two men, clashes re-erupted early July
this year as disagreements once again
flared up. Troops on each side has been
impossible to control and the country
is still in a condition of violence and
uncertainty, many fearing a new civil war.
What is happening
in South Sudan?
PAGE 5 FALCK HELP SEPTEMBER 2016