The orange 'angels' of the FAS Angel first aid team

With the desire to help victims and spread good and humane things in the community, for nearly 5 years, the orange-shirted "angels" in the FAS Angel rescue support team have devoted themselves on the streets of the capital, especially in the recent tragic fire.

Rushing to save people in a fire On the night of May 23 and early morning of May 24, Mr. Pham Quoc Viet ( Hanoi ) and his teammates were providing first aid to people who had been in a traffic accident on Kham Thien Street (Dong Da District, Hanoi), when they received news of a fire at Lane 119 Trung Kinh (Trung Hoa Ward, Cau Giay District, Hanoi). Immediately, Mr. Viet assigned the team members to complete the task of supporting the victims in the traffic accident, and he himself dispatched an ambulance to the scene of the fire.

Photo caption — FAS Angel first aid support team participated in rescue and relief efforts in the fire at lane 119 Trung Kinh (Cau Giay district).

At 1:05, Mr. Viet arrived at the scene. The first image that caught his eye was the fire fighting team trying their best to break down the gate, kick down the door, and spray water at the areas that were burning fiercely. “The corrugated iron roof, the awning in the yard, the railing, and the stairs inside the motel emitted a huge amount of heat during the fire. In a moment, the corrugated iron roof in the yard was weakened by the fire and collapsed onto the yard. Fortunately, the fire fighting team had taken safety precautions to ensure rescue work. The fire fighting team also had a hard time getting through the areas containing the homeowner's and tenants' belongings.” After grasping the situation of people trapped, and with experience in rescuing many fires, Mr. Viet judged that the number of people trapped in the fire and needing assistance was not a small number. Anh Viet continued to mobilize the ambulance, along with 14 team members to support the rescue force, provide first aid to the victims... About 10 - 20 minutes later, an elderly woman was brought out first. The FAS Angel first aid support team and the 115 force took care of her health, opened her airway, provided first aid and transferred her to the Transport Hospital. "When the fire was gradually under control, the fire department and I were mobilized by the fire department to coordinate deep into the scene to search for victims, especially survivors. Together, we cleared away objects blocking the way to make the rescue work more convenient and provided medical equipment to reduce cross-infection from victims to rescue forces. At around 2 am, we supported many victims, checked each floor, each room, each location suspected of having victims and planned to evacuate the deceased" - the leader of the FAS Angel first aid support team shared.

Although the heat of the fire continuously wore down the strength of the orange-shirted "angels", the will and determination to save many people from the fire was always burning in the hearts of every FAS Angel team member. As one of the members of the FAS Angel rescue support team present at the scene of the fire, after many hours of supporting rescue, Mr. Nguyen Van Bang (20 years old, technology driver, Nam Dinh ) shared: “4:30 - 5:00 am, I just moved the last victim out of the fire scene, at this time I felt very tired, my steps were unsteady. My teammates and the firefighters were also the same, they were exhausted, sitting along the alley, their faces, limbs were black, full of dirt…” “All night” supporting rescue at the fire, each member of the FAS Angel team felt pain and fatigue all over their bodies, but they felt satisfied because they were contributing a small part of their strength to save lives and support the unfortunate people trapped in the fire. "All-night rescue" on the road No one knows since when, the image of the "angels" in orange shirts has become familiar to people on many streets and key intersections of Hanoi such as Ring Road 2, Cau Giay, Dai Co Viet, Tran Nhan Tong, Le Duan, Hoang Cau, Ring Road 3, Nguyen Trai, ... After each working hour, members of the FAS Angel first aid support team gather together, do useful work for life, support people who have accidents on the road. Established in September 2019, under the leadership of Mr. Pham Quoc Viet (born in 1987, Nam Dinh), up to now, the FAS Angel first aid support team has 150 volunteers, and 50 core volunteers, actively participating in rescue work. In particular, the team has 30 volunteers present every night at traffic "black spots" in Hanoi to support traffic participants. Team members are trained in first aid and have the skills to handle unexpected situations at the scene. After nearly 5 years of operation, the team has provided free rescue for 17,000 people. In recent years, FAS Angel has not only stopped at rescuing people in traffic accidents, but they are also enthusiastic, not afraid of difficulties and dangers, participating in rescue in work accidents and fires. Each member is a different piece of the puzzle in terms of circumstances, life, age and profession, but everyone has the same goal of saving people, helping people in distress, spreading good and humane things to the community.

From 9pm to 12:30am, members are on duty at traffic “black spots”, routes where accidents often occur. Team members collect information and report accident locations via a group on the social network Zalo so that the on-duty crew can provide timely support. Images are also provided to authorities and victims’ families to understand the situation.

“Some days we spend the whole night and the whole next day supporting the authorities or the victims. There are even victims whose relatives in the commune have not arrived yet to take care of them, so we will arrange for members to stay at the hospital to take care of them. We have been doing this regularly for nearly 5 years, supporting and giving first aid to 18,000 cases, helping 17,000 people. Some people who have crossed the line of death have a second chance at life, and some who have died are brought back to the funeral home or their hometown when the procedures are completed,” said Mr. Pham Quoc Viet.

In addition, FAS Angel also organizes sessions to share escape skills and first aid skills for themselves. At the same time, Mr. Viet and the team members also constantly learn the skills of the fire prevention and fighting force, to improve their rescue expertise and connect more deeply with the fire prevention and fighting force, together rescuing more people.

Talking about the difficulties of the FAS Angel rescue support team, he said that there are many difficulties, of which the operating budget is one of the major obstacles. Currently, the budget comes from calling for people's generosity, from the Rescue Station 01 model that teaches people how to repair cars. "In addition, there is the difficulty in the number of core volunteers. This is a very hard job, not a joke, high discipline, strict requirements in supporting victims (following the correct procedures and achieving effectiveness in first aid). Many members after the training period could not stand the request and asked to withdraw. In addition, there are also people who do not continue working with the team because they also have worries about "food and money", changing accommodation, work, ... Besides, many of them feel scared when dealing with serious accidents, even though they have done well in minor cases. They gradually lose the passion in their hearts..." - Mr. Pham Quoc Viet shared. Despite many difficulties, up to now, many members are still attached to the FAS Angel rescue support team, continuing to spread to all the streets of the capital, working day and night to support fires,... Under the leadership of team leader Pham Quoc Viet, the members of the FAS Angel team always keep in mind: "Saving people is not a joke, not a hero; ensuring safety for yourself and helping victims effectively, that is saving people."