More than 100 Emiratis and expats sign up to emergency volunteer group

The volunteers enrolled with Sanid, the Abu Dhabi-based National Emergency Response Volunteer Programme, during a three-day humanitarian conference that ended on Thursday.

DUBAI // More than a 100 Emiratis and expatriates have added to the ranks of volunteers helping authorities to tackle road accidents, fires, earthquakes, terror attacks or other major emergencies.

The volunteers enrolled with Sanid, the National Emergency Response Volunteer Programme in Abu Dhabi, at a three-day humanitarian conference last week.

They will be trained in “community response to serve the nation”.

“We have recruited over 100 volunteers in our programme,” said Arwa Jubran, regional coordinator at Sanid, or “support” in Arabic.

The organisation, set up by the Emirates Foundation in 2009, had its own stall at the Dubai International Humanitarian Aid and Development Conference, or Dihad.

“Many are interested to be trained to volunteer in our programmes across the seven emirates for any emergency,” Ms Jubran said.

“We were in Dihad to spread the culture of volunteering in emergency and crisis management fields.”

Sanid has trained 4,500 Emiratis and expatriates, from home makers to students and medical staff, to respond to accidents, disasters and other crises locally and overseas.

Its courses are based on the US Community Emergency Response Team and the Swedish Civil Defence League, and offer four levels that volunteers can opt to complete.

Training takes place regularly across the country and equips volunteers with first aid and CPR skills. They also learn about disaster preparedness, fire suppression and search and rescue.

Disaster simulation and emergency exercises are held to help volunteers practise their skills.

“We are called as a team for official response by Civil Defence, police and medical services,” said Ms Jubran. “We have helped authorities during fire and other emergencies like unstable weather where there have been tent collapses.

“We have been helping with every Formula One race in Abu Dhabi, where we are stationed to manage volunteers and respond in case of any emergency.”

She said Sanid volunteers stepped up to help evacuate people from homes and offices when tremors were felt in the UAE this year.

The group’s work is not confined to the UAE. Its members have delivered food and other aid in Jordan, Pakistan, Syria and the US.

“Overseas, we have been to Jordan to help Syrian refugees,” Ms Jubran said. “We have also been to Pakistan after the flooding in 2010. We even went to US after Hurricane Katrina.”