The Ministry of Emergency Management on Tuesday selected 10 typical
cases of emergency rescue and work safety accidents in 2020 to warn
governments, enterprises and society as a whole against the dangers of
lowering their guards at critical moments. However, the cases indicate that although the lockdown of the country
in the first quarter of 2020, following the outbreak of the novel
coronavirus, halted industrial production in many sectors, and
contributed to a drop in deaths caused by accidents, the decline in the
number of deaths caused by natural disasters last year can partly be
attributed to the development of the country's overall emergency
response system, particularly because the country saw the worst floods
in recent years in 2020. Since the founding of the Ministry of Emergency Management in 2018,
the State has paid special attention to improving the emergency
management skills and professionalism of rescue teams. Also, the emergency management departments at various levels attach
great importance to learning from every major accident, so that they can
become more responsive while dealing with an emergency. Thanks to that, many lives could be saved in a timely manner during
various accidents last year, such as the hotel collapse incident in
Quanzhou, Fujian province; the roof cave-in at Tashan Coal Mine in
Datong, Shanxi province, and the floods in Yingshang county, Anhui
province. The modernization of the emergency response system is a long and arduous task, but the country is determined to complete it. However, the awareness of work safety and natural disaster prevention
and control measures remains low in many enterprises, local governments
and grassroots communities. So it might be a good idea to make emergency management and rescue
skills part of compulsory education nationwide, the way it is in Japan. That will not only help prevent accidents, but also bring about a
marked reduction in deaths during natural disasters and accidents. It will also reduce the load on professional emergency rescue
personnel, leaving them to focus and play a greater role during serious
emergencies.
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