Rescue training camp in Malta

Eight members of the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team, accompanied by Assistant Chief Fire Officer Bill Evans, group manager Paul Gibson and youth advocate Tom Sefton, participated in a five-day intensive training camp in Malta last month, as guests of the St John Rescue Corps.

Accompanying the team as observers were counsellors Lesley Rennie and Jack Colbert, led by chairman Tony Newman, who form part of the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority.

The USAR team and members of the St John Rescue Corps participated in a number of joint rescue exercises involving high angle rope rescue, rescue from confined spaces including shoring techniques, anchoring and rigging techniques.

Training was carried out at several locations in Malta and at Fort Madalena, the headquarters and training school of the St John Rescue Corps. The aim of the training camp was to get the teams to work and operate together in different terrestrial and climatic conditions and to prepare the UK USAR team to give its support to overseas rescue elements, should a natural disaster in a foreign country occur.

During their training and familiarisation visit, the Merseyside USAR team also participated in a joint rescue exercise organised by the St John Rescue Corps.

The exercise, under the direction of former Police ex-Superintendent Ken Jones and Staff Officer II (Training and Development) and Andrew Grech from the St John Rescue Corps, was held at the former White Rocks Holiday Complex in Pembroke. This involved the participation of a large number of Maltese governmental and non-governmental organisations connected with emergency response and rescue.

'Exercise Blue Watch' simulated a terrorist attack on a hotel, whereby a vehicle delivering goods supposedly left explosive devices, which were triggered off and left devastating effects on both buildings and people.

Teams from the St John Rescue Corps, the Armed Forces of Malta Explosives Ordnance Disposal Unit, Combat Engineers and Air Wing, the Accident and Emergency Units from Mater Dei Hospital, St John Ambulance, the Red Cross, Civil Protection Department and the Malta Police rushed to the site to safely secure the affected buildings and rescue over 30 'casualties'.

The local emergency and rescue organisations were able to observe the Merseyside USAR team make use of their latest search and rescue equipment to effectively locate and rescue the 'casualties' trapped under the rubble.

The Merseyside USAR team shared their knowledge on rapid aerial ropeway rescue techniques, shoring techniques, as well as safe breaching for access.

Members of the St Paul Sea Cadet Corps Unit, officer cadets from the Mcast Maritime Institute, and members from the British Residents Association in Malta participated as casualties in the exercise.

The training visit was organised and co-ordinated by the St John Rescue Corps, which is a uniformed voluntary NGO that assists local constituted authorities in rescue operations in Malta and overseas. Capt. Reuben Lanfranco, Commissioner and Corps Commander of the St John Rescue Corps, says that the close link between Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service and the St John Rescue Corps goes back a number of years.

It was agreed that similar training camps and exchanges be organised on an annual basis to continue fostering an exchange of ideas and practices in the field of search and rescue. More information may be found at www.stjohnrescuecorps.org.