‘City’s first disaster response centre to be functional by March 2017’

The metropolis’ first urban disaster response centre was in the final stages of completion and would be inaugurated by March 2017, officials of the Pakistan Red Crescent (PRC) Sindh informed participants at a seminar held in connection with the International Day for Disaster Reduction, on Monday.

Titled ‘Live to tell: Raising Awareness, reducing mortality’ the seminar was jointly organised by PRC’s provincial chapter and the German Red Cross. 

With the number of natural calamities increasing every year, experts said that international management bodies had declared the current century the ‘century of disasters’.

The PRC called for improving coordination between government institutions, private as well as other stakeholders to enhance people’s preparedness in dealing with urban disasters and natural calamities.

Sindh Minister for Social Welfare Shamim Mumtaz said governments alone could not provide relief and humanitarian assistance during natural disasters, and urged all concerned organisations, individuals to collectively devise a strategy to provide humanitarian assistance during such times.

The provincial minister said rural areas should also be focused upon while planning for disaster management, adding, that with the private sector’s support, government institutions would do wonders and be able to reach a lot more people.

She also called for revamping and empowering Girl Guides and Civil Defence groups so as to get their services in rescue operations.

The minister further claimed to have written an official letter to the chief minister for setting up five to 10 more trauma centres, including one at the Super Highway.

PRC Sindh chairperson, Farzhana Naek, said the response centre had always tried to help the most vulnerable in times of natural or man-made disasters.

“In Karachi, Thatta, Badin, Jacobabad, Jamshoro, Sanghar, Tharparkar and other districts, emergency and disaster response teams comprising trained volunteers were introduced to deal with any natural disaster,” she said.

Farzhana further stated that the seminar was a part of the PRC’s awareness campaign as well as an attempt to provide all disaster relief agencies a platform for preparation for urban disasters.

“Resilience is to build stronger societies today, to be prepared for tomorrow!” she said, and added, that for the purpose learning traditional methods from indigenous communities was very important along with advocacy.

Chairman of the CHK Trauma Centre’s managing board, Prof Saeed Qureshi, spoke about different types and kinds of traumas during disasters. He stressed on developing a comprehensive mechanism to deal with such disasters in the wake of the drastic population increase.

”Disasters are environmental, natural and man-made. The country was recently hit by one too but the concerned authorities were not prepared to deal with them effectively,” he deplored. “There should be mass scale trainings for on-site triage and first aid, since the two carry utmost importance until an injured victim reaches a medical facility.”

PRC Secretary General Ghulam Muhammad Awan stated that, “Owing to climate change, the frequency and intensity of floods has comparatively increased in the past 20 years.”

The PRC has been playing an important role in raising awareness as well as equipping communities to prepare for natural hazards, he added.

“We need to make collective efforts to raise awareness regarding climate change and should place more emphasis on plantation and usage of natural resources for domestic use.”

PRC provincial secretary, Kanwar Waseem, NED’s dean of Civil Engineering Department and in-charge of Earthquake Research Centre, Dr Sarosh Lodhi, representative of National Institute of Oceanography, Dr Nuzhut Khan, and other representatives of concerned departments also addressed the seminar.