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PRIME MINISTER'S DEPARTMENT
NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT AGENCY
Duty comes first for elite firefighter
- Admin UKK
- Berita
As Malaysians prepare to celebrate Hari Raya Aidilfitri with family and friends, Ahmad Sahfezal Ismail is busy packing for deployment to Myanmar.
The firefighter from Terengganu is one of the many Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (SMART) personnel set to travel to Myanmar today to assist in relief efforts following the 7.7-magnitude earthquake that struck the country.
The tremors could be felt all the way to Thailand, Vietnam and parts of Southern China on Friday.
While Malaysia was unaffected by the earthquake that claimed more than 1,000 lives so far, the government has pledged to help its Asean neighbours which were devastated by the disaster.
Yesterday, the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) despatched a preliminary team of 10 personnel to Yangon, Myanmar, to assess the situation.
Today, a military aircraft will fly to Yangon again, carrying a larger team that includes members of the elite SMART team.
SMART, which comprised personnel from the police, armed forces and the Fire and Rescue Department, had been deployed around the world in many disasters, including the 2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake and the devastating tsunami that hit Acheh, Indonesia, and parts of south Asia in 2004.
As part of the SMART team on the ground, Sahfezal is under no illusion that the task ahead would be easy. While forgoing the festivities is difficult for him, there was no question on his mind that duty came first.
"It's never easy to be away from my loved ones, especially during Hari Raya, but saving lives is my priority.
"This mission is critical, and I am honoured to be part of the team providing aid to those in need," he told the New Straits Times.
SUBANG, 30 Mac - Seramai 50 pegawai dan anggota Pasukan Mencari dan Menyelamat Khas Malaysia (SMART) bertolak ke Mynmar pagi tadi bagi menyertai operasi mencari dan menyelamat (SAR) di kawasan paling terkesan akibat gempa bumi di Myanmar.
Pasukan berlepas menggunakan dua pesawat A400 Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM). Pesawat pertama berlepas pada pukul 9.30 pagi sementara pesawat kedua bergerak setengah jam selepas itu.
Operasi disertai seorang Komanden Kontijen, serta 49 anggota termasuk 16 dari ATM, 13 Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) serta 21 Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat Malaysia (JBPM).
Fokus misi kali ini adalah tertumpu pada operasi memcari dan menyelamat. Antara peralatan yang dibawa ialah set Base of Operations (BoO), peralatan mencari dan menyelamat, komunikasi, teknikal, perubatan dan dua buah trak Man.
Tempat operasi dan tempoh masa operasi SMART di Myanmar akan ditentukan oleh kerajaan Myanmar.
Dalam pada itu, dua kali mesyuarat penyelarasan telah dilakukan oleh Agensi Pengurusan Bencana Negara (NADMA) untuk misi bantuan ini bersama agensi terlibat.
Tragedi ini telah mengorbankan sekurang-kurangnya lebih 1,600 orang , sementara 3,408 cedera setakat kemaskini awal pagi tadi.
NAYPYIDAW: Rows of wounded lay outside the emergency department of the 1,000-bed hospital in Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw on Friday, some writhing in pain and others in shock after a powerful earthquake.
A stream of casualties were brought to the hospital -- some in cars, others in pickups, and others carried on stretchers, their bodies bloody and covered in dust.
“This is a mass casualty area”, a hospital official said, as they ushered journalists away from the treatment area.
The hospital itself was hit by the terrifying tremors, which buckled roads and ripped tarmac apart as the ground vibrated violently for around half a minute.
The hospital's emergency department was itself heavily damaged, a car crushed under the heavy concrete of its fallen entrance.
“Many injured people have been arriving, I haven’t seen anything like this before,“ a doctor at the hospital told AFP.
BANGKOK: A strong earthquake in Myanmar has caused damage to many high-rise buildings in the Thai capital Bangkok, its governor said on Friday.
Chadchart Sittipunt said the number of buildings damaged was not yet known and inspections were underway. He urged people to be cautious. - REUTERS
NAYPYIDAW, Myanmar: A powerful earthquake hit Myanmar and neighbouring Thailand on Friday, turning a major hospital in the Myanmar capital into a "mass casualty area" and trapping dozens of workers in an under-construction skyscraper in Bangkok.
The 7.7-magnitude tremor hit northwest of the city of Sagaing on Friday afternoon at a shallow depth, the United States Geological Survey said. A 6.4-magnitude aftershock hit the same area minutes later.
The quakes wrought widespread damage, particularly in Myanmar, where buildings fell onto their sides, roads cracked open, and the well-known Ava bridge collapsed near the epicentre.
In the capital Naypyidaw, AFP journalists saw the entrance of the emergency department at the city's main hospital pancaked onto a car.