DSU's Arafat: Integrated dispatch to have major impact on improvement of reaction to emergency situations

The head of the Department for Emergency Situations (DSU), secretary of state Raed Arafat, on Tuesday stated in Constanta that a project is currently being developed to train dispatchers of the ambulance, emergency and firefighting services for a "fully integrated" dispatch system.

"In what concerns the dispatch issue, a project is being developed right now financed by the Swiss Government via the Health Ministry and in cooperation with the DSU, under which all the dispatchers of the ambulance, firefighting services and including our colleagues from the emergency service -112 - will be trained so that we will have a fully integrated dispatch in the end. This means that, in the future, it won't be necessary for a firefighter to take the call that refers to fire or medical staff to take the call that refers to a medical emergency, but they can all take calls for each other. This training will start in one year and of course that we will need some time to cover the entire country. It will have a major impact on reducing the amount of time for picking up the call and improving reactions to the various emergency situations," said Arafat, on the occasion of his participation in the presentation of the activity report of the "Dobrogea" Inspectorate for Emergency Situations.

Regarding the infrastructure of emergency services, he mentioned that there is a programme meant for the consolidation of 36 buildings facing seismic risk.

"There is a programme of the World Bank worth 50 million euros, which includes the repair and consolidation of a number of 36 buildings facing a seismic risk, all firefighting units. A similar programme is being developed right now for the gendarmerie and the police. However, this programme will support the intervention entities, first of all let's protect the rescuer, for if we lose the rescuers during an earthquake, there will be nobody else to protect the people who need rescue, this was the purpose. This is a programme financed first of all by the World Bank, with the support of the Ministry of Finance and it will show its first effects starting this year," said the representative of the DSU.