Emergency response in Sabah's interior gets a boost from new 4WD ambulances

KOTA KINABALU: Emergency and disaster response to the outskirts and rural areas of Sabah will be improved with the handing over of four-wheel drive (4WD) ambulances to the Civil Defence Force here.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Sabah, Sarawak Affairs and Special Functions) Datuk Armizan Ali said this initiative is part of a national effort to boost Civil Defence response and to provide more assets to rural areas.

He said Sabah has its own challenging geographical conditions and the new 4WD ambulances can help with disaster and emergency response to the interior.

He said the Civil Defence Force is the go-to agency for natural disaster management and therefore requires enhanced human resources and assets for better performance.

Armizan said it is the government’s commitment to give more emphasis to Sabah and Sarawak owing to their differing geographical conditions from Peninsular Malaysia.

“For this year, we have managed to secure 15 units of these new ambulances for Sabah.

"For the first phase of distribution, eight are being handed over today (Friday, June 23),” he said, adding that the remaining seven will be deployed in August.

Armizan said the vehicles are type B ambulances that incorporate features allowing medical personnel on board to communicate directly with hospitals while on the road.

He said this allows the hospital to be updated on a patient’s condition during the journey.

The new ambulances will be deployed to eight districts in Sabah namely Tuaran, Papar, Sandakan, Keningau, Pitas, Ranau, Putatan and Kalabakan.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor was present to witness the handing over of the ambulances at the Menara Kinabalu compound.