DOHA: The General Directorate of Coasts and Border Security has started manufacturing firefighter boats.
“They will be stationed along the Doha coast close to Marriott, Pearl Qatar and Four Seasons,” Ali Ahmad Al Badid, Head of the directorate told Al Watan.
The directorate started manufacturing boats some seven years ago when it needed speedy boats to respond immediately to accidents offshore, he added. The first boat had the capacity of 45 knots and later the speed was upgraded to 65 knots. Now the latter boat is helping us in patrolling on and offshore to maintain security in our territorial waters, he added.
Other boats manufactured by the directorate are for divers, monitoring and control.
The control boat could be used as a multi-purpose facility — a floating office to register the entry of boats — and as ambulance.
Major violations being detected by Coast Guards are committed by fishermen venturing into Qatar’s territorial waters.
“They infiltrate into restricted areas of offshore petrol and gas platforms. This is the only notable violation being caught by coast and boarder security guards, said Al Badid. Other violations are minors such as boats not complying with safety and security measures and speed limits, he added.
The directorate receives calls for help from Doha’s coastal areas mostly in summer. People call authorities when their boats stop working, or to inform cases of drowning and fires. Very few calls are received in the winter months as people prefer to go to desert for camping, he added.
Calls are responded immediately. Instructions are issued to the nearest patrolling boat to rush to the site of an accident, for example. If an accident is critical and needs more help, then other boats are deployed as needed.
Al Badid said the directorate has first-aid facilities for drownings and fires. “We immediately contact to the emergency unit of Hamad General Hospital and the control room, he added.
To maintain security and safety along the coast, the directorate is doing its best with regard to its duties and responsibilities. “Whenever we see a suspected boat, it is immediately asked to stop. Then inspection starts. We inspect equipment, safety and security measures. We also check the licence and papers of the workers on board to ascertain whether they are wanted by security agencies or not.” The Peninsula
