The contingent’s key members are Vietnamese students in Russia.
According to the head of the contingent, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Tuan from the Search and Rescue Department under the General Staff of the VPA, the contingent with a high resolve has been practicing with more difficult contents so as to give best performances at the upcoming Army Games 2019.
Under the direction of the Russian coach and the head of the contingent and with the encouragement from the Search and Rescue Department’s leadership, the contingent’s members have gradually completed all difficult contents which are quite new to them.
They have intensively practiced fire-fighting, overcoming dangerous obstacles, breaking into collapsed high-rise buildings and debris to search and rescue victims, giving first aid to victims and bringing them down from high-rise buildings.
During the drills, they performed various difficult techniques, such as cutting through obstacles at the area of collapse to save the injured, detecting mines, explosives, and poisonous gases, breaking into basement of building collapse to rescue victims and seeking and neutralizing terrorists. Climbing up a high-rise building is a difficult content that they have to master.
Because the contents of the competing event are hard and complex, the contingent practiced one content each day. Training intensity is also gradually improved over the days.
Good health, precise moves and mastery of machinery and equipment, such as drilling-machines, cutters and welding machines are required for each contingent’s member.
Lt. Col. Nguyen Van Tuan said that one of the most difficult situations requiring much endeavor is to break down an iron door to get into the damaged building’s basement to search for the victims in a narrow, dark and dusty space, in a very difficult condition and use first-aid skills to temporarily stop bleeding for the victims.
The VPA’s Search and Rescue Contingent will compete with six others from the host Russia with professional troops mainly from the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations.
According to Tuan, Russian peers admire the Vietnamese contingent’s members’ high spirit, determination and all-out efforts when witnessing them training in a short time.
Here are some photos of the contingent in training in Russia.
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The contingent’s members and their Russian coach |
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Vietnamese search and rescue officers breaking down a door with saws |
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Operating in a narrow space requires search and rescue satff to make all-out efforts. |
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Climbing up a high-rise building to rescue victims is dangerous. |
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Search and rescue officers trying to overcoming a very difficult condition to complete their tasks |
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Officers bringing victims out of the site of collapse |
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In protective clothing, the contingent’s members are practicing in line with the real search and rescue conditions. |
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The training ground of the contingent |
Reported by My Hanh and The Tuan
Translated by Mai Huong