Brunei Set For- ARDEX 05 In Selangor
By Lyna Mohammad

Bandar Seri Begawan - Brunei is set to take part in the Regional Disaster Emergency Response Simulation Exercise by sending six special squad members of the Fire; Services Department to the event.

This was disclosed in a press statement from the Asean Secretariat, announcing that Asean will conduct the exercise, labelled ARDEX-05, in Selangor, Malaysia on September 19.

The exercise, the first of its kind, will see the involvement of a number of Asean member countries and the mobilisation of personnel and light to medium equipment across borders.

Conducted within the framework of the Asean agreement on disaster management and emergency response, the simulation exercise is signed by the foreign minister of Asean last July 26 during the 38m Asean Ministerial Meeting in Vientiane, LAO PDR.

It will also provide guidance and lessons for the development ofAsean Standby Arrangements and Standard Operating Procedures under the agreement and will be based on a serious earthquake throughout peninsular Malaysia, with Selangor being the most affected.

"A joint urban search and rescue -operation will be performed on a cluster of high-rise buildings in the state of Selangor," said the press release.

Besides testing mobilisation of cross-border assistance and deployment of urban search and rescue capacities, it will also provide an opportunity for the three Asean countries to test their- own preparedness and internal coordination.

The total personnel from Malaysia to be deployed and mobilised for the exercise is estimated around 80, comprising 24 personnel from its Fire and Rescue Department and_ 24 from Special Malaysian Assistance and Response Team (Smart).

Also taking part are personnel from the Malaysian Red Crescent Society, Welfare Department, Subang Jaya Municipal Council, Information Department and emergency medical services around Kuala Lumpur.

Singapore will meanwhile send overseas rescue personnel from the Singapore Civil Defence Force whose contingent comprises specialist personnel and rescue units from its elite Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (Dart).

The Philippines will be designating a chief referee to head a group of 10 referees from the Asean countries for the event.

An evaluation meeting will follow the next day (September 20) and a workshop on the September 22 to incorporate lessons learned from the exercise into the Asean Standby Arrangements and Standard Operating Procedures.

Meanwhile, on September 21, a joint workshop with UN Joint Logistics Centre will be conducted to deliberate on the critical role of logistics in regional arrangements. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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