On January 18 and 19, the Mogilev Regional Organization of the Red Cross will deploy mobile heating points in the places of Epiphany bathing. Andrey Martynovsky , the chairman of the regional organization, spoke about this .
“Our volunteers will be on duty in the open reservoirs of the region where Epiphany bathing is organized - they will distribute hot tea, and if necessary, be ready to provide first aid,” Andrey Martynovsky emphasized. - Mobile heating points will appear at some objects. For example, in Mogilev they will be located in a bathing place on Lake Pechersk, where about 2,000 people come to celebrate every year. Two tents with heat guns will be set up here so that people can stay warm and avoid hypothermia.”
According to the chairman of the regional organization, such work on the feast of the Epiphany is carried out annually and people gratefully accept this help and attention. “Winter is a special time, as Red Cross volunteers mobilize their forces when cold weather sets in,” Andrey Martynovsky emphasized. - At 15 degrees of frost and below, we install heating points in crowded places (for example, near bus stops), distribute hot tea, and organize first aid duty. During this period, we pay special attention to motorists who are on the tracks.”
This year, in the Mogilev region, bathing at Epiphany will be organized in 33 specially equipped places. Residents of all districts of the region, as well as Mogilev and Bobruisk, will be able to plunge into the Epiphany water. Places will be organized both in open water on the basis of rescue stations, and in specially equipped fonts. According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, believers in Mogilev will be able to take a dip in Pechersk Lake and the Grebenevskoye Reservoir (Holy Lake). Residents of the Mogilev region - in the font in the agricultural towns of Polykovichi and Sukhari, as well as in the village of Dubinka.
Experts note that you need to be very careful when dipping into the hole, as the contrast between body temperatures and cold water can cause spasms. In order not to endanger their lives, employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and OSVOD urge to do this in specially designated places. Before bathing, in no case should you drink alcohol. It is not recommended to plunge into the hole for people with severe chronic diseases, for whom a sharp temperature load is dangerous. Being in the water should be short-term: it is better for a hardened person to be there for no more than 1 minute, for an unprepared person - no more than 30 seconds. After diving, you need to quickly rub yourself with a towel, put on dry warm clothes and, if possible, drink hot tea.
