The Lebanese Organization for Studies and Training(LOST), in cooperation with UNICEF, “Roads for Life” organization, and the office of Baalbeck-Hermel Governor, HE Bachir Khodor, organized a graduation ceremony for 27 municipal police officers of the Union of Municipalities of Western Baalbeck and Municipalities of Deir El Ahmar. The graduation is part of “The First Responder” project, which aims at training the municipal police on how to respond to traffic accidents and preserve the lives of citizens. The event was attended by representatives of associations, heads of municipalities, municipal associations, and social and civil figures.
The founder of LOST, Dr. Ramy Lakkis, spoke about traffic accidents in Baalbeck-Hermel, stating, “as for traffic accidents, the area is not different from other areas, but the rest have begun to work to reduce traffic accidents. In our region, car accidents’ high rates are shocking. The loss of one of our dedicated team members, Mohamed Al-Masri due to a car accident was one of the many reasons for us to shed light on this issue. Starting from here, we must all work to give traffic accidents the utmost importance, and share responsibility for the protection of citizens”.
Rooney Alfa, General Director of “Roads for Life”, explained the objectives of the association and how it was established, in addition to its projects in training those concerned with maintaining the safety of citizens and saving their lives by paramedics, internal security forces, and the army. Alfa stated, “we have been late in focusing on municipal police members in the peripheries because they are in direct contact with citizens. We hope that UNICEF will increase its support to these periphery regions to protect the sanctity of life, because most victims are productive young individuals”.
Finally, Tanya Chapuisat, UNICEF’s representative in Lebanon, thanked the mayors and the participants in the training, stating, “this project needs to be developed, and UNICEF is interested in learning about the training and its importance in order to increase its contribution to these programs.” At last, certificates were distributed to the graduates, as well as first aid kits that help them to provide assistance to the victims during car accidents, and to protect their lives.
