LAHORE: The Punjab Emergency Service (Rescue-1122) Director General Dr Rizwan Naseer formally inaugurated the 6th National Rescue Challenge at the Emergency Services Academy on Monday.
Inaugurating the challenge, the DG said that such healthy competitions are necessary for improvement in professional skills of emergency services. He said that the First National Rescue Challenge was organised in 2011 and it is a historic moment that the 6th National Rescue Challenge has been launched.
He hoped that next year the International Rescue Challenge would be held and would include participation from foreign rescue teams. He appreciated the teams and asked them to show the same spirit and passion while dealing with emergencies in their respective districts.
An international mentor for Disaster Response Force, Pakistan, Edward G Pearns, said: “I am happy to see the development of emergency services in Pakistan within a short span of 13 years.” He said that Disaster Response Force (DRF) of Rescue 1122 had improved significantly and hoped the same would be notified as an International Disaster Response Force very soon.
Pearns also appreciated the new initiative of Motorbike Ambulance Service in all divisional headquarters of the province with 900 trained emergency medical technicians and well-fabricated cost-effective motorbikes.
A total of 14 rescue teams from Punjab, Gilgit-Baltistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, as well as rescue wardens from Sialkot and Lahore University of Management Sciences are participating in seven challenges including Trauma, Fire Fight, Water Rescue, Swimming, Deep Well Rescue and Height Rescue Challenges, which are being evaluated in accordance with the international standards of emergency management and by giving difficult emergency scenarios and situations to respond effectively.
The main purpose of conducting this challenge is to encourage the emergency services across the country to enhance their professional skills and competencies. The event would end on October 18, 2017.
