In a bid to swiftly and adequately address natural disasters in the country, government has trained at least 51 people in search and rescue management.
The week-long training workshop which is underway in Salima is being facilitated by a South African based trainer of trainers, Andre Marx.
It is expected that the trained personnel will impart the skills and knowledge gained to their colleagues in their respective departments such as military, police, aviation and fire fighters.
Speaking during the opening ceremony of the training, Commissioner for Disaster Management Affairs in the Department of Disaster Risk and Management, Ben Botolo, said the country needs to leave no stone unturned in its preparations for any natural calamities.
He observed that devastating floods and other calamities that have hit the country should be a wakeup call to authorities.
“All these areas are prone to disaster and they are very critical areas for proper functioning of the country so that when there is a fire outbreak, they [rescue team] can easily come in and rescue people’s lives. Sometimes in terms of areas affected by floods and there is need for food , these people can drop food for people using helicopters but only skilled personnel can do that so this training is going to provide expertise in search and rescue,” Botolo said.
In his remarks, Marx said it is important to equip different people with the skills on search and rescue so as to save more lives during disasters.
“This training will help a lot especially in rural areas where there are not enough emergency services that can help people get medical attention when affected by natural disasters,” said Marx.
A similar training was conducted in 2014.
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