The National Emergency Management Agency, Abuja Operations Unit says it has recorded two fatalities in 21 emergency cases so far responded to in the Federal Capital Territory during the yuletide.
The Head, Search and Rescue, Labaran Ahmed, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Friday in Abuja.
Ahmed spoke while inspecting the six emergency response units set up under the Operation Eagle Eye initiative, strategically located at City Gate, Bwari, Giri, Zuba, Nnyanya and Mararaba.
He said members of staff and volunteers were deployed to the strategic locations for quick and easy responses to distress calls at all times during the season.
He said: “So far, we have responded about 20 to 21 incidences from the beginning of this operation with two fatalities.
“Majority of these incidences if not all are road-related crashes.
“There is only one fire incident which occurred in Gwarimpa Estate on Christmas Day.”
Ahmed said state of the art equipment were also deployed to ensure safety of lives and property in the FCT and its environs during the yuletide.
According to him, some 21 volunteers, who are mostly medical practitioners, are also deployed across the six strategic locations to provide first aid services.
He said: “There is an ambulance, which is also called a mobile intensive care unit ambulance.
“It is meant to serve as mini hospital to provide initial care to victims of trauma before they get to the hospital.
“It is equipped with state of the art equipment.
“It has a monitor that reads vital signs of the victim that will be produce in the hospital to continue treatment.
“It has a machine that removes foreign objects in the body of victims, particularly those affecting their breath and others that can be mobilised to monitor fracture and to carry one or more victims.
“We have two rapid response vehicles.
“It is a multi-hazard equipment.
“It has a winching system to bring out a vehicle that had fallen into a ditch.
“It has fire fighting component, which has a capacity of 1,000 litres of water and 10 litres of chemicals, and it is to extinguish fire at incipient stages.
“On daily basis, we have about 21 volunteers deployed across six locations.
“Some of them are medical practitioners and they are bringing their own experience to bear.
“As citizens, volunteerism is the way to go in emergency management.
“No single agency can do it alone.
“Therefore, all resources you can mobilise from government to private concerns is very important.”
Abraham Machu, a volunteer who spoke with NAN, said he was happy doing the job of providing care for victims.
Machu, a dentist, who retired from the Civil Service three years ago, said the initiative should be extended beyond the yuletide and young volunteers should be employed by government.
He said: “It is noble idea; it should not be limited to the festive period but should be all year round.
“If it is all year round, the incidences of accidents will be reduced drastically, but if it is only festive period, we will not achieve much.
“I suggest government should think deep and try to do more and try to employ the very young volunteers.”
NAN.