SINGAPORE: The next major public emergency exercise, which is known as the Northstar exercise, will be held on May 23.

The exercise scenario is a large-scale simulated sea mishap on board a cruise ship. This was revealed by Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng at the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) annual workplan seminar on Monday.

Mr Wong also disclosed that a new system will be introduced to the emergency ambulance service which will allow ambulance personnel to assess a patient's condition earlier.

This new medical protocol system will be introduced to the 995 service next year.

Through a simple set of questions, the crew will be able to assess a patient's condition before they arrive at the scene. Private ambulance operators will also be linked to the new system.

The emergency ambulance service, which is run by the SCDF, received 109,459 calls in 2007 – 14 percent higher than the number of calls received in 2006.

As for this year's Northstar exercise, the home affairs minister said unlike previous exercises that involved land-based emergency scenarios, the next one will be on board a cruise ship.

"It will involve 13 agencies to test and validate their emergency response plans. The SCDF, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and other agencies have been working with the shipping community and cruise operators to minimise disruptions and inconvenience," said Mr Wong.

He also reminded the SCDF officers that they will face new challenges with major infrastructural changes in the next few years.

These challenges include the establishment of taller skyscrapers and mega installations on Jurong island to handle alternative fuel such as biofuel.

At the seminar, Mr Wong was also briefed on Singapore's first Fire Investigation Dog Unit, which will be fully operational by the middle of this year.

The dogs at this unit are trained to sniff out traces of flammable material, left behind after a fire, and each dog requires about six months of training.


- CNA/so