Werner Brandao

Born in the port city of Rotterdam. A port and city that is fascinating and inspiring to so many people and of which so many people are extremely passionate about. Rotterdam stole my heart too.

After I finished my schooling at the STC (College for Shipping and Transport) as a student, including several port related internships, I worked for over twelve years at one of the biggest container terminals in Europe. As a child I shared my admiration and passion for the port with another dream. I wanted to be a fireman. After several years of working in the port I finally managed to combine my work with my childhood dream. I volunteered to be a firefighter. A combination that fulfilled all my wishes.

During the years I was working in the port as a terminal operator and instructor, I witnessed the huge development and innovation of the port of Rotterdam in every way. I look back on this educational period with pride. For the past two years I have been closely involved in the port of Rotterdam in another role, namely as a professional firefighter on the Maritime Incident Response Group Netherlands (MIRG-NL). This is a team that specializes in ship firefighting.