Training ends for emergency response to chemical weapons
A basic training course on assistance and protection against chemical weapons and emergency response to chemical incidents ended at a city hotel in Dhaka on Thursday.
The Bangladesh National Authority for Chemical Weapons Convention (BNACWC) and Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) jointly organised the four-day-long training, said a press release.
Dr Md Enamur Rahman, state minister for disaster management and relief, was chief guest, while Lieutenant General Waker-Uz-Zaman, chairman of BNACWC and principal staff officer, Armed Forces Division, was present as a special guest for the training closing ceremony at Hotel Le Meridian.
The state minister distributed certificates to training participants.
The course familiarised the participants with the use of all the gear and equipment they may need to use during an emergency.
Mechanisms involving identification, detection and decontamination procedures in a chemical accident were also taught.
Basic training on the medical management of chemical weapon casualties was also provided to participants.
The practical hands-on training of this course was done at the training complex of the Fire Service and Civil Defence, Mirpur, on Wednesday.
Four instructors from the OPCW, 20 participants from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Nepal, and 17 participants from Bangladesh attended the course.
It should be mentioned that the same regional course was jointly conducted by the OPCW and the BNACWC in Bangladesh in March 2018.