By Ayman Adly/Staff Reporter
Co-ordination and understanding among various international search and rescue teams (SRT) are highly essential in saving lives during disasters and calamities, an International Search and Rescue Advisory Group’s (INSRAG) meeting recommended in Doha yesterday.
The INSRAG team leaders’ meeting which was inaugurated yesterday was organised and sponsored by the Internal Security Forces (ISF) Lekhwiya and the meeting is being held for the first time in Doha.
It is also considered a technical meeting aimed at experience and information exchange among experts in the field of search and rescue from various countries. The participants at the meeting, which concludes on Wednesday, include representatives of RT from Qatar, Spain, UK, USA, Oman and other countries.
“Qatar has been keen to make all people live in peace and security and it is very keen to take part in such meetings and host them according to well-established scientific principles,” Brigadier Mahdi Mutlaq al-Qahtani, director of ISF training and courses, said during his inaugural address.
He further stressed the importance of timely co-ordination among various SRT’s in the world, to save the lives of a large number of people in difficult times, which also demands developing the overall work system of these to maintain an effective response. He said Lekhwiya has attained a high level of training and preparedness to deal with such situations whether nationally or internationally. Besides, it has dealt successfully with some 37 major international missions since 2005.
Brigadier Al-Qahtani said the ISF SRT is working to get an international ranking by the end of this year.
He also expressed the hope that the meeting would result in practical recommendations that would enhance SRT’s work in various countries across the world and enhance co-operation for the good of humanity.
Jasper Holmer Lund, chief of the co-ordination support section, INSRAG Secretariat, explained that around 150 representatives from 40 countries would discuss their experiences in the field of search and rescue and exchange views on the best ways to handle such missions based on their practical expertise.
This, according to him, is of great importance in such a rapidly changing world with a high urbanisation rate, which demands effective means of modern technology to handle situations in a timely manner.
“The guidelines for INSRAG were adopted some 20 years ago in Switzerland. These determine which standards to be followed in handling rescue efforts during the time of disasters and aim at attaining a common understanding among different teams of different backgrounds. For instance, the implementation of such guidelines helps define the work of professionals and amateur volunteers and co-ordinate both of them for better rescue results,” he explained.
Lund appreciated the potential of Doha in organising such a highly technical meeting and said the capabilities of the country was considerably growing in the field.
He said that a meeting on the political and technical levels will be held in Abu Dhabi next year, so practitioners would meet together with decision makers to attain better co-ordination.
Major Khamis al-Murykhi, ISF national communication officer for INSRAG, gave a presentation on various overseas rescue missions undertaken by ISF SRT.
He said the team has 161 qualified members with 96 of them ready for overseas assignments. He also said that it has a new specialised training field which is highly equipped with all sophisticated technology. In addition, it regularly conducts highly specialised training for its members to raise the level of preparedness.
