CHALLENGES
As they race against time, rescuers in Myanmar are also operating under tough conditions.
One of the challenges the team faced was the hot weather. “It is 41 degrees (Celsius), so we had to institute a certain work-rest cycle in order to keep ourselves going for the prolonged ops and we also need to hydrate ourselves very frequently,” said Col Tay.
The contingent was also one of the first teams on the ground and was requested to start work immediately, so it had little time to set up and establish communication with its base camp, he said.
However, the morale of the officers are “extremely high”, said Col Tay. The welfare of the personnel was also taken care of as it was eventually able to set up its base camp near a hotel, enabling the team to use facilities such as the function room and car park.
“In general, the mood is very focused on our mission at hand.”
In response to a CNA query on how this operation differs from past ones, Col Tay noted that the team was escorted by the local fire service wherever it went.
“That works for us because … they would have a good appreciation of the situation on the ground and they will bring us to focused areas where they think there are lives to be saved.”
For the contingent’s 48 Muslim officers, there were also efforts to keep morale high over Hari Raya Puasa – which fell on Monday.
“It was an extremely busy day and (rescue operations) took us all the way until nightfall before we returned back to base,” said Col Tay.
The team, however, was able to conclude their day with a few Hari Raya messages for Muslim teammates, which gave them a “boost”, he added.
SAVING A LIFE
Sharing their experience on rescuing a man from under a collapsed building on Sunday after an eight-hour operation, Col Tay said it happened at just the second site the team went to.
Before that, what they saw had worried them.
“The first site that we visited, there were residential buildings and what we observed was that the second floor came down to the first, and the first floor completely gave way,” he said.
“We were thinking, if all the buildings were like this, it would be a significant challenge for us to conduct any search and rescue ops.”
When they arrived at the second site, to their surprise, the man was able to respond despite him being in a “precarious position”.
