LAHORE – The Rescue 1122 will participate in the International Firefit Championship next year and also send its officers for training at the Strathclyde Fire & Rescue Service, UK, Punjab Emergency Service Rescue 1122 Director General Rizwan Naseer said on Sunday.
He made these remarks after returning from the UK where he not only received three fire appliances as a donation but also discussed matters of mutual interest and cooperation with Strathclyde Fire & Rescue Service Chief Officer Brian Sweeny and Fire Board Chairman and Councillor Baillie Hanzala Malik.
The Rescue 1122 DG, on his way to the UK, attended the International Firefit Championship in the UAE where arrangements for participation of Rescue 1122 teams in January 2012 were discussed and meetings with representatives of other countries were also held. In Glasgow, Naseer received three fire appliances, which included one Arial platform and two fire engines and discussed community safety legislation, which he said was now essential for prevention of a number of emergencies so that safer communities could be developed through the public-private partnership (PPP).
He also discussed advance courses in incident command management system. As a result of these meetings, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Punjab Emergency Service, Strathclyde Fire & Rescue Service and the Glasgow City Council and a batch of officers would be sent to the Strathclyde Fire & Rescue Service for training and officers from SFR will visit the Emergency Services Academy. This process is essential to ensure optimal working of fire and rescue services on modern lines, which is essential to ensure public safety.
Naseer also discussed essential provisions for ensuring fire safety in high-rise buildings and installation of fire hydrants in cities. He thanked British Member of Parliament (MP) Anas Sarwar, Chaudhry Sarwar and Baillie Hanzala Malik for their efforts in capacity development of emergency service in Pakistan.
Malik expressed confidence that the Rescue 1122 will utilise equipment to their maximum benefit and its partnership with the Strathclyde Fire & Rescue Service will be instrumental in developing an effective system for emergency response and community safety in Pakistan.
Malik said that he was proud to be associated with the Rescue 1122 since it had, for the first time, provided citizens of Punjab with a sense of safety by providing timely emergency care, which is a basic right.
