Department of Information Technology

Headed by subsection chief Huang Teng-chieh, the Taipei City Urban Search and Rescue Team joined members from the National Fire Agency and the New Taipei City Fire Department to form the Taiwan Search and Rescue Team. The joint team will take part in the six-day-long 2023 General Disaster Prevention Training in Tokyo.

In addition to participating in the exercise between August 30 and September 4, the joint team will also visit the Tokyo Fire Department, Wangan Fire Department (Central Area), and the 9th Fire District Headquarter of Tokyo Fire Department. In addition, the team will also take part in an exchange session with members from the 8th Fire District Headquarters.

This is the fifteenth time Taipei City’s search and rescue team have been invited to the drill in Tokyo.

In 2021, the Taipei City Urban Search and Rescue Team acquired the heavy capability certification and became the first squadron in Taiwan to pass the National Accreditation Process. The members teamed up with Taichung City and Pingtung County fire departments to form the emergency rescue task force which took part in the humanitarian response effort during the aftermath of the Turkey earthquake.

Every year, Japan holds multiple disaster prevention drills across the nation which takes place at the same time. The massive exercise seeks to raise public awareness on disaster prevention and strengthen the preparedness of public agencies to major disasters. It also invites emergency response teams from across Asia to take part in the exercise through the “Network for Crisis Management” framework connecting several Asian cities.

Taiwan and Japan are both situated along the Pacific Ocean’s Ring of Fire, making them susceptible to threats such as volcanic eruption and earthquake. That is why it is important for the two countries seeks to learn from each other and share knowhow. The annual disaster prevention drill in Japan sees the participation of over one million personnel which includes police, firefighters, troops, and volunteers. It is the biggest exercise of its kind in Asia, and Taipei City Government hopes to take advantage of this opportunity to share its experience and learn from top elite teams from different countries.