China's biggest non-profit civil rescue group turns 10

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China's biggest non-profit civil rescue organization Blue Sky Rescue celebrated its 10th anniversary in Beijing on Thursday.

More than 30,000 volunteers gathered to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the organization with over 100 government and non-governmental organization representatives from around the world in attendance.

The head of the organization says he hopes to see more cooperation with all sectors of Chinese society and other civil society organizations involved in rescue operations.

Zhang Yupu, communication officer of Blue Sky Rescue /CGTN Photo

Zhang Yupu, communication officer of Blue Sky Rescue, said the biggest change that it has made in the past 10 years is that it's now well-equipped with cutting-edge devices and technologies in the area of emergency rescue.

Guo Tao, vice president of Hytera, a Chinese telecommunication giant which has been providing Blue Sky Rescue with technical support in the past two years, said the company is working on innovations with the rescue organization.

She stressed that Blue Sky Rescue is very professional in emergency rescues, while the company is an international leader in the area of emergency telecommunications. So the company and the rescue organization should work together to find out how they can combine the two and apply the world-leading communication technologies to real emergency rescue occasions.

Cooperating with technical companies is just part of Blue Sky Rescue’s efforts to improve its rescue capabilities and influence.

Blue Sky branch teams have been established in Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Singapore, with the aim of exchanging rescue skills and strengthening cooperation with local rescue professionals.

Patrick Thong, a Blue Sky Rescue’s volunteer from Malaysia /CGTN Photo

Patrick Thong, a Blue Sky Rescue volunteer from Malaysia, said that Malaysia used to have no such organization like Blue Sky Rescue that can integrate all rescue sectors, such as medical care, fire control, and search and rescue. But Blue Sky Rescue managed to do that in Malaysia.

Shajana Rimal, a volunteer from Blue Sky Rescue Nepal said that the organization is doing well there in disaster relief, and local rescuers are willing to learn from them.

According to the State Council, China’s emergency system will actively take on more international responsibilities, and constructively take part in international emergency services.

At the same time, Blue Sky Rescue will implement domestic and international standards to improve emergency rescue standards for China’s civil society organizations. The big get-together also aimed to expand cooperation with foreign and local groups.

Founded in 2007, Blue Sky Rescue has become China’s biggest non-profit civil emergency rescue organization.

It has over 30,000 registered volunteers. Among them are more than 10,000 people with professional training who are available for immediate rescue assignments.

The organization has taken part in more than 10,000 search and rescue missions so far, helping save lives after earthquakes, landslides, and hurricanes.

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