CESV in action at the Girne Fire Station 

By Chris ELLIOTT

Just over a year ago I went to Girne Fire Station to be with the CES(V) Volunteers when they gave training to the local fire brigade and I wrote in a local newspaper of what I experienced and observed then.

Action at the Fire Station

Having been involved with the 112 (now CES(V) Volunteers in the past it is natural that I have a deep interest in what they are doing and how their organisation is growing.

“This is the sixth week that we have been helping the North Cyprus Fire Service personnel with first aid training and we have visited Lefkosa, Gŭzelyurt, Geçitkale, Famagusta, Yeşilkõy and Girne spending 3 days with each station and working with the individual shifts during their 24 hour duty period. 

We have been giving them a refresher course which includes making contact with the victim, assessing for their injuries and if they are unconscious, placing them in the recovery position. We will also demonstrate, using training aids and mannequins, how to administer CPR and also deal with heart attacks. There will also be tuition in dealing with broken bones, burns and impaled objects which is done through the use of a victim and some rather horrific makeup to make it more realistic.

Soon it was time to start the days training and Murat Kansu the team leader gathered his team to listen to Bob Flint the Senior Trainer who spent 30 years with the UK fire service and prior to that he was a nurse. He then introduced the other members of the training team who were, Steve Collard who had been a Police Officer in London for 30 years and then Pat Guthrie who is a retired Doctor and also Pattie Foch Gatrell who is a retired nurse.

I sat and watched the training which I have seen before and it has to be said this is very professional and also entertaining and despite the language difficulties and excellent translation from Murat, everyone seemed to be enjoying the experience and refreshing their knowledge and skills in first aid.

Another aspect to this regular training is that both CES(V) trainers and the Fire Officers all said they had developed friendships with individuals in the opposing teams and welcome this opportunity as a way of bringing all peoples together for the benefit of the community.

I would like to express my thanks to Girne Station Officer, Mustafa Pacer, Team Leader, Murat Kansu and his team and the North Cyprus Fire Service for allowing me to visit the Girne Fire Station and take pictures for the benefit of the expatriate community.

So it was just over a year later the CES(V) volunteers were invited back to Girne Fire Station recently to meet both old and new friends. In that period much has changed with the retirement of the founder of CES(V) Terry carter but he had come back from the UK for a holiday and had come along to help his successor, Steve Collard

Steve is the new Director of Operations for the Civil Emergency Service Volunteers who work so closely with the TRNC Civil Defence, Fire, Police and Ambulance services but do watch the following video and hear what Steve has to say about the growth and future plans of CES(V).