Petrolimex organizes drills to improve professional capacity in fire prevention and fighting, rescue and search and rescue

On the afternoon of July 25, at tank area No. 18 - Duc Giang Petroleum Depot, Petroleum Company Region I, Vietnam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex/Group) coordinated with functional units to organize a drill on counter-terrorism, firefighting and rescue (PCKB, CC & CNCH). The drill aimed to test the effectiveness of the developed plans, evaluate the command and control capacity and the ability to coordinate operations between on-site forces and specialized forces in emergency situations.

Việt Nam•27/07/2025

Attending and directing the drill, on the side of the Ministry of Public Security, there were Major General Huynh Thoi An - Deputy Director of the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department; Major General Nguyen Huu Hung - Deputy Director of the Department of Internal Security; along with leaders, officers, and lecturers from the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department, the Department of Internal Security, and the Fire Prevention and Fighting University. On the side of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, there was Mr. Trinh Van Thuan - Deputy Director of the Department of Industrial Safety Techniques and Environment; along with leaders, officers, and specialists of the Industrial Safety Department. On the side of the Hanoi City Police, there was Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Le Cuong - Deputy Head of the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department; along with leaders, officers, and soldiers of the People's Committee and the Viet Hung Ward Police.

Representing the Vietnam National Petroleum Group were Mr. Nguyen Sy Cuong - Deputy General Director, Mr. Ngo Quang Toan - Head of Safety Technology Department and representatives of the Group's functional departments. On behalf of the Petroleum Company Region I, there were Mr. Vu Quang Tuan - Chairman of the Company, Mr. Hoang Van Binh - Director of the Company and all employees of the Petroleum Company Region I and Duc Giang Petroleum Depot.

According to the hypothetical scenario, on the afternoon of July 25, a group of terrorists took advantage of local conflicts to incite chaos at Petrolimex - Store 86, then controlled a drone carrying homemade explosives to attack tank No. 18 of Duc Giang Petroleum Depot. The explosion caused a fire at the foot of the tank, injuring one worker and threatening to spread to the entire tank area. As soon as the incident occurred, the on-site forces quickly activated the alarm, deployed measures to rescue victims, isolate the fire and urgently report to the Company. At the same time, notify the functional forces: PC07 Department - Hanoi City Police, Viet Hung Ward Police and medical units. The forces immediately approached the scene, controlled the fire, prevented the fire from spreading, coordinated to arrest the subjects, ensuring the safety of people and property.

Local forces and grassroots forces coordinate to handle situations professionally and effectively.

The drill was successful, ensuring absolute safety for people, vehicles, equipment and facilities. Although the actual weather conditions changed compared to the scenario, the units flexibly adjusted and completed the task as required. In particular, the deployment of the IPM Fire Fighting Robot has improved the handling efficiency, successfully applying technology in modern fire prevention and fighting work. The drill attracted the attention and direct observation of more than 300 students attending the Group's Fire Prevention and Fighting & Rescue training class. The professional atmosphere, well-organized, and tight scenario have brought high efficiency in both practice and propaganda and education.

Commenting on the results of the exercise, Mr. Ngo Quang Toan - Head of Technology - Safety Department highly appreciated the proactiveness and flexible response ability in handling situations arising outside the script of the participating units and individuals. The exercise contributed to improving the capacity of organizing on-site rescue, practicing situation handling skills, and at the same time enhancing the effectiveness of coordination between the Group and local police and rescue forces. This program has a special significance when for the first time integrating PCKB content with CC & CNCH, showing the close coordination between the Vietnam National Petroleum Group and the Department of Internal Security (A02), the Fire Prevention and Fighting Police Department & CNCH (C07), PC07 Department - Hanoi City Police, Fire Prevention and Fighting University and functional agencies.

The fire was quickly extinguished, ensuring safety of people and property.

With the specific characteristics of petroleum production and trading posing a high risk of fire and explosion and being able to be exploited to carry out acts of sabotage and terrorism, the Vietnam National Petroleum Group always identifies fire prevention and fighting, fire prevention and fighting and rescue as core tasks, inseparable from the sustainable development strategy. Duc Giang Petroleum Depot with a capacity of more than 80,000 m³ - an important hub in the petroleum storage and supply system for Hanoi and the Northern region, is always on the list of targets that need to be prioritized for absolute safety protection. This year's drill program is also a practical activity to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the National Day of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (September 2, 1945 - September 2, 2025) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the Vietnam National Petroleum Group (January 12, 1956 - January 12, 2026). In the context that from now until 2026, Hanoi will host many important political and social events, proactively conducting drills is a key factor to ensure absolute safety for key petroleum facilities, maintain energy security and social order and safety in the area.

In his closing speech, Mr. Nguyen Sy Cuong - Deputy General Director of the Group emphasized the importance of the drill and training program, helping trainees gain more knowledge, flexible response skills, and multi-force coordination in handling complex and high-risk situations such as terrorist sabotage combined with fire and explosion. "I believe that, from the knowledge and experience gained through this course, trainees will continue to spread the spirit of responsibility, proactively prevent and respond flexibly, effectively handle all risks that may occur at their units, contributing to maintaining the safety of workers, business assets and the general security of the community." - He said.

Mr. Nguyen Sy Cuong - Deputy General Director of the Group delivered the closing speech of the program.

Before the actual drill, from July 22 to the morning of July 25, the Group organized a training course on fire prevention and fighting and rescue for employees of its affiliated units. The program was implemented in a combination of online and in-person formats, attracting a large number of participants across the system. Within the framework of the course, students were updated on new legal regulations effective from July 1, 2025, mastered safety inspection procedures and incident handling skills at petroleum and LPG facilities. The training activities contributed to raising awareness and professional skills for the workforce at the facility, while creating a solid practical foundation to effectively serve the management and safety work at the unit.

Fire Prevention and Rescue Training Course attracts a large number of employees of the Group to attend

The practical exercise at Duc Giang Petroleum Depot was an important highlight, successfully concluding the 4-day training course on professional skills and drills on fire prevention and fighting, fire prevention and fighting plans for 2025. This exercise and training activity clearly demonstrated the proactive spirit and high responsibility of the Vietnam National Petroleum Group in enhancing response capacity, ensuring production safety, maintaining energy security and contributing to social stability in the new context.

Some beautiful pictures at the rehearsal: