‘Skills of rescue divers need to be honed’

Navy commodore says rescuers are earning a living and saving lives

LAHORE: Rescuers are earning a livelihood and serving the nation by saving emergency victims in disasters; whether natural or manmade. This was stated by Pakistan Navy’s Station Commander Lahore Commodore SM Shahzad.

He was speaking in a meeting with Punjab Emergency Services Director General Dr Rizwan Naseer at Emergency Services Headquarters on Monday.

During the meeting, both dignitaries discussed issues of mutual interest and decided to hone the professional skills of the divers of rescue service.

Registrar Academy Dr Farhan Khalid, Deputy Director (Training) Dr Muhammad Azam and Adjutant Academy Dr Ali Imam Syed also attended the meeting. He further said that the performance of Rescue 1122 in Punjab showed praiseworthy training for standards. The commodore further said he was pleased to learn that rescuers were ready to respond in deserts or floods to achieve their goal and destination of safeguarding the people of Pakistan. “Compete with yourself, discover yourselves,” urged, adding there are unseen enemy like fires, building collapses and other emergencies.



Shahzad held a detailed meeting with Dr Naseer and assured him of full support from the Pakistan Navy on the technical expertise and flood management skills for Disaster Response Force of Rescue 1122 in future. He said that both sister organisations shall work shoulder-to-shoulder during upcoming disasters.

Dr Naseer also said the Pakistan Navy was an integral part of Pakistan’s armed forces as its role in dealing with natural calamities was praiseworthy. Dr Naseer briefed him that the training institute was unique in the SAARC region and has become a national centre of excellence as it provided free of cost training to cadets of other provinces, including K-P, GB, AJK, Baluchistan, and Sindh.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 15^th, 2018.