Gaining trust of local authorities, love of local people
Due to the impact of climate change, weather conditions in the Central Highlands are becoming increasingly extreme, and natural disasters tend to increase in terms of intensity and severity. As a result, hot weather, prolonged drought, explosions, forest fires, high alert levels of water shortage for production and domestic use occur in dry season while heavy rain, flooding, especially flash floods, landslides are recorded in rainy season. All kinds of epidemics and diseases can break out at any time, directly threatening the State's assets, and lives of people.
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Army Corp 3’s troops hone their SAR skills during competitions. |
Therefore, units under Military Region 5, Army Corps 3, Corps 15, military commands and border guard commands of Central Highlands provinces consider preventing and overcoming consequences of natural disasters and search and rescue operations their peacetime combat missions and have mobilized thousands of troops and vehicles to protect people's lives and property.
Many people in Gia Lai and Dak Lak provinces could not forget heavy consequences of the fifth and sixth storms in 2019 with hundreds of houses destroyed, thousands of hectares of plants submerged and over 200 households in Lak district (Dak Lak province) stuck in floods. At that time, troops from Army Corps 3, and the two provinces’ armed forces gave timely support to them, helping them resume normal life. Most recently, in last April and May, units under Corps 15 provided fresh water to ethnic minority people in Gia Lai province’s border areas facing serious shortage of water.
Senior Colonel Nguyen The Vinh, Commanding Officer of Kon Tum provincial Military Command, said that since 2014, the provincial armed forces have sent tens of thousands of troops and vehicles to help locals surmount aftermath of rain, storms, floods, landslides, drought, and forest fires, minimizing human and property losses.
In 2018, the command sent 100 troops to help Laos overcome consequences of the collapse of hydropower dam in Sanamxay district, Attapeu province, leaving deep impression on locals and brightening the image of Uncle Ho’s soldiers.
Taking initiative in action
One of the lessons drawn from the implementation of Resolution 689 is embracing the “four on-spot’s” slogan, including on-site command, on-site force, on-site materials, and on-site logistics service, and taking initiative in disaster prevention and SAR operations. Accordingly, units have been active in training, raising troops’ expertise and SAR skills, making plans, coordinating with local forces, and preparing personnel and vehicles.
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Gia Lai provincial border guards give assistance to people of Ia Mo commune, Chu Prong district, in floods in May 2022. |
Many successful exercises have been organized, including the civil defensive drill between districts of Vietnam’s Kon Tum and Cambodia’s Ratanakiri provinces, between Kon Tum and Attapeu provinces, joint exercise among three military medical forces of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, among others.
Notably, under units’ recommendations, 114 disaster prevention teams have been established in localities and thousands of Vietnam dong has been invested in materials and equipment for the work. Moreover, troops and vehicles always stay ready on request.
Apart from the yearly SAR training program, units have also formed specialized SAR teams whose members master SAR vehicles and are good at SAR skills.
According to Sr. Col. Ro Mah Tuan, Political Commissar of the Gia Lai provincial Border Guard Command, thanks to its leading role and thorough preparation, the command has well performed its disaster prevention and SAR tasks over the past decade.
Translated by Mai Huong