Founder's Profile

Rescue 1122 Integrated Emergency Services Model has been established in Pakistan for professional management of emergencies such as medical emergencies, road traffic crashes, fires & hazardous material incidents, building collapse, water rescue & flood emergencies etc. The Emergency Services Reforms were necessitated after the failure of repeated attempts to revitalize existing Civil Defence and Municipal Fire Brigades. This was a very difficult task due to the resistance from these organizations, absence of trained emergency personnel or a modern emergency services training institute in Pakistan. Even the emergency departments of teaching hospitals did not have trained emergency paramedics. A few ambulances available with NGOs were merely patient transport vehicles without equipment and trained staff.

Thus, the citizens of Pakistan were denied even the basic right to timely emergency care in case of any emergency or disaster, as witnessed during the 2005 Earthquake in Pakistan. Against all odds, Rescue 1122 was established after successfully completing all the challenges including recruitment of the right staff and their training on modern lines; acquisition of appropriate land for Rescue Stations; construction of Rescue Stations; development of international standards ambulances, rescue and fire vehicles in Pakistan; acquisition of toll free emergency number, 1122 and wireless frequencies; development & implementation of vehicles tracking, call monitoring, emergency management & dispatch system and quality management systems.

Finally, after establishing the core infrastructure comprising of essential emergency services personnel, the ultimate vision of Rescue 1122 is prevention of emergencies through proactive community participation in saving lives and changing minds of the society so that we can establish disaster resilient, socially responsible, healthy & safer communities. In this regard, the Community Emergency Response Teams have been established at UC level in all Districts and several initiatives are in progress to establish Safer Communities in Pakistan.

It is a great honor for Pakistan that the Pakistan Rescue Team of Emergency Services Academy has become the first United Nations INSARAG Classified Team in South Asia. I sincerely hope that the Rescuers maintain the standards of the Service and gain the respect & blessings of the public by maintaining a courteous & professional approach. Although an international standard Emergency Service is available for rescue of emergency victims, the alarming increase in the number of avoidable road traffic crashes and fire incidents highlights the need for effective planning & implementation of laws to prevent an increasing number of emergencies and disasters and to build a safer Pakistan.