Young soldiers lived with mold and without hot water — now the new conscripts will move into pavilions

Domestic (https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/indland)

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Young soldiers lived with mold and no hot water — now the new conscripts will move into pavilions

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There have been many examples of poor housing conditions for conscripts. Now the military is building new facilities — but until they are ready, pavilions will be the solution in several places.

On June 24, DR visited the new pavilions where the young soldiers will be housed when they begin their conscription on August 3, 2026. Video: Marie Bergmann 7 minutes ago.

Mold on the walls. Dirty mattresses. Poor ventilation. Windows that were about to fall out.

It sounds like descriptions of an abandoned and dilapidated house. But that is how reality has previously looked for some of the country's conscripts.

Now conditions are being improved with new or renovated barracks.

But when around 1,600 young people begin the now 11-month-long conscription on August 3, the new barracks buildings are not yet ready.

Read also: Parties left dumbfounded: New barracks will not be ready in time for conscripts (https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/indland/partier-staar-maabende-tilbage-nye-kaserner-naar-ikke-blive-klar-til-vaernepligtige)

Therefore, a large part of the young soldiers will instead move temporarily into pavilions.

And although the word 'pavilion' may conjure images of a white and flimsy plastic tent at a music festival, the reality is quite different.

The so-called pavilions consist of stacked containers fitted with four-person rooms, new bathrooms, changing rooms, and common areas with Wi-Fi. A 'clear upgrade,' the military calls it.

- The alternative would have been for the conscripts to live in the old buildings. That would probably have been the worst solution, says Colonel Kenneth Strøm, head of the Conscription Program.

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'We have to look ourselves in the mirror and ask if we can do better'

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At the Training Regiment at Aalborg Barracks, workers are busy making the pavilions ready for the 60 new conscripts who start on August 3.

And compared to the old conditions, this represents a significant improvement, says Søren Bo Larsen, military consultant at the Training Regiment.

He does not hide the fact that the old buildings were in need of replacement.

- They were worn down. Outdated, you could say. We live in 2026. We have to look ourselves in the mirror and ask: 'Can we do better?' And now we are, says Søren Bo Larsen.

Previous DR reports have shown examples of poor housing conditions for conscripts in several places.

- Back then, the conscripts lived in twelve-person rooms, and now they will live in four-person rooms. That brings more peace in everyday life and better facilities, says Søren Bo Larsen.

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Better facilities can affect the desire to stay in the military

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The new conscription lasts 11 months, compared to the previous four months, as part of the rebuilding of the Danish defense.

That ambition places greater demands on the facilities, and the hope is that the new buildings can give conscripts the desire to continue their career in the military, says Søren Bo Larsen.

- We need to rebuild the military with many conscripts, and of course we want some of them to stay here after their service. So good facilities are a good place to start to give them a positive experience, he says.

The temporary buildings, which are intended to improve the conditions for conscripts, will cost somewhere between 8 and 12 billion kroner. Photo: The Danish Defense

The pavilions are only a temporary solution.

The military is in the process of building new accommodation facilities at 11 service locations across the country. Construction is scheduled to take place between 2026 and 2028.

The construction projects are intended both to ensure that there is actually space for the many extra conscripts coming to the military in the coming years, and to significantly improve conditions for them.

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