Staff Reporter :
The Fire Service and Civil Defence Directorate has initiated the formation and training of a specialised response team. The training program was officially inaugurated at 10:00 AM on April 20 at the Fire Service and Civil Defence Multipurpose Training Ground in Purbachal, Narayanganj in a bid to enhance the country’s disaster response capacity, especially in the face of earthquakes and other natural or man-made disasters
Brigadier General Muhammad Jahed Kamal, NDC, AFWC, PSC, Director General of the Directorate, inaugurated the course. Also present at the event were Lieutenant Colonel MA Azad Anwar, psc, Director (Training, Planning, and Development); Md. Ohidul Islam, Principal of the Fire Service Training Complex; Md. Kamal Uddin Bhuiyan, Deputy Director (Operations and Maintenance); and Md. Saleh Uddin, Deputy Director of Dhaka Division, along with other officials and staff members.
A total of 50 firefighters and rescuers from various fire stations across the country have been assigned to the specialized training program in Purbachal. The course, which runs from April 20 to May 1, 2025, aims to enhance the participants’ professional capacity in conducting search and rescue operations in large-scale disasters, particularly earthquakes. In addition, necessary search and rescue equipment will be stored at the Purbachal facility to support future operations.
The initiative comes in the wake of a recent devastating earthquake in neighboring Myanmar and growing concerns among experts about Bangladesh’s vulnerability to major seismic events. Seismologists have warned that Bangladesh, located in an earthquake-prone zone, could experience a major quake at any time. Smaller tremors occurring in recent times are often considered potential precursors to a larger event.
To address these risks, the Fire Service and Civil Defence Directorate has already been implementing various preparedness measures, including volunteer training, awareness campaigns, public demonstrations, surveys, and inspections. The newly formed specialized team is expected to play a vital role in post-earthquake rescue efforts in Dhaka and other high-risk areas.
In his inaugural speech, Brigadier General Jahed Kamal emphasized the importance of decentralizing manpower and equipment to ensure that in the event of a large-scale disaster, operational and administrative activities can be conducted from multiple locations.
“This specialized training will create a team capable of playing a significant role during emergencies, particularly earthquakes,” he said. He also mentioned plans to expand similar training programs to build capacity across the department.
