The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Abuja Operations Office, on Tuesday, organised a one-day stakeholders training for emergency responders in the Federal Capital Territory.
Mr Justin Uwazuruonye, Head of Operations said the training was aimed at enlightening the participants on the use of extricating tools on-board the new Rapid Response Vehicle,
The vehicle was donated to the agency by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
He said that it was important to train the emergency stakeholders on the use of the tools to enable them handle disaster victims in a professional manner.
“Emergency response services are in huge deficit in Nigeria and over the years, we were able to establish the fact that the victims of trauma such as road traffic crashes and collapsed structures, needlessly die or are confined to wheelchairs.
“As a result of unprofessional handling by spontaneous responders or first responder agencies.
“It is in view of the above that we at the Abuja Operations Office of NEMA saw the need to train our critical stakeholders alongside our operational staff .
“On the use of extricating tool on board the new Rapid Response Vehicle and other critical equipment for search and rescue within our area of responsibility,” he said.
Uwazuruonye added that the training, which would be in batches, is expected to improve the capacity of the responders in equipment handling.
He said the training would also sharpen their skills when carrying out their task of saving lives during disasters.
Mr Moses Oyegun, a participant from the FCT Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) appreciated the agency for the training.
Oyegun said that the training had provided an opportunity for them to learn more on how to mitigate the impact of emergencies and disasters on affected persons.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that participants were drawn from NEMA, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Federal Fire Service, FCT Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Civil Defence, among others. (NAN)