On Monday morning, there will be intense activity and flashing blue lights near Bøgeskoven in Skanderborg, Denmark, as a large-scale exercise is conducted in the area. The exercise is organized by the Southeast Jutland Police (Sydøstjyllands Politi) in collaboration with the East Jutland Fire Department (Østjyllands Brandvæsen), the Central Denmark Region (Region Midtjylland), and Smukfest, a popular music festival that begins shortly after the exercise.

The purpose of the exercise is to test the emergency preparedness and cooperation among the involved authorities and the festival organizers before the influx of festival-goers. The exercise, which starts at 9 AM and lasts for a couple of hours, is based on a simulated emergency situation. Police, fire services, and regional health authorities will be on site to fine-tune their collaboration and ensure that everything functions optimally when Smukfest opens its doors to this year’s attendees. Therefore, the many flashing blue lights and increased activity are not a cause for concern for local residents.

Meanwhile, the Danish Road Directorate (Vejdirektoratet) has issued a warning about potential traffic issues in the area surrounding Skanderborg and Ejer Bavnehøj. The first festivalgoers will have the opportunity to set up their tents as early as Sunday, with the first music performances beginning soon after. The busiest traffic periods are expected to be on Sunday, August 4, Tuesday, August 6, and Wednesday, August 7, between 10 AM and 4 PM.

To ease traffic congestion, the Danish Road Directorate encourages festival attendees to travel well in advance and to follow the posted yellow signs that read “Smukfest” instead of relying on GPS navigation. All road users in the area should also stay updated with the latest traffic information via Trafikinfo.dk and remember to tune in to P4 Traffic for real-time updates.