The Milne Bay Provincial Administration, under the leadership of Governor Titus Philemon, is the first maritime province to have entered into an agreement with Digicel PNG to establish a 24 hour Maritime Emergency Contact Centre.
Governor Philemon said his team had been working tirelessly with Digicel to establish the contact centre, to ensure that it provided an appropriate service to the people who rely heavily on maritime transport.
“As a maritime province, we are proud to have taken this first and most significant step to partner with Digicel, PNG’s leading communications service provider, to establish this innovative facility to increase our capacity to handle maritime emergencies,’’ he said.
“Digicel has helped to cover our province and now we have an Emergency Contact Centre.’’
Under the agreement, the Disaster Emergency Contact Centre will be staffed by Digicel’s agents and will operate 24/7. Seafarers in distress will call the contact centre, to establish their whereabouts and start a search and rescue response.
Digicel’s government relations director Gary Seddon said Digicel was proud to be embarking on this program with Governor Philemon and his team.
“This facility will build on Milne Bay’s existing programs of maritime emergency response. It’s about establishing a robust, reliable method of responding to a call for help. This initiative is ultimately about saving lives at sea,” Seddon said.
Milne Bay provincial disaster officers will also attend Safety at Sea training at the Madang Maritime College, under this venture with Digicel.