Interior Minister thanks Georgian rescuers for their dedication, announces emergency service re-equipment

Georgian Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri on Tuesday extended his gratitude to Georgian rescuers and firefighters for their dedication to work and announced the Ministry would continue the technical modernisation and re-equipment process of the Emergency Management Service.

In his address to the Parliament, Gomelauri discussed forest fires as one of the challenges of 2022 and highlighted the “heroic” efforts of the firefighters who had worked “24 hours a day all over the country” and had been also involved in the search-and-rescue operations, the Interior Ministry said.

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The rescue crews, consisting of 100 Georgian rescuers, have been continuing to help with the search and rescue operations at the site of the quake-hit zone after the devastating Turkey earthquake on February 6, even when rescuers from some other countries have already left Turkey, he stressed.

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The purchase of ten high-mobility fire-fighting vehicles at the first stage of the technical modernisation process was also announced by Gomelauri, noting within the international partnership, the Service would also receive five more fire engines.

As the Minister emphasised, the Emergency Management Service was equipped with new vehicles, including off-road, all-terrain quad bikes and water vehicles in 2022, and added mountain and diving rescue, as well as chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear emergency response equipment, were completely updated.