Joint search and rescue centre to open |29 July 2009

The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC), at the Coast Guard’s naval base on Bois de Rose Avenue, will be run by the Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority, the Seychelles Maritime Safety Administration and the Seychelles Coast Guard.

Its main aim is to ensure an enhanced level of efficiency and reliability where search and rescue is concerned within Seychelles’ territory and the search and rescue region.

The centre will mean more efficient rescue missions if an accident happens to a vessel or a plane within our flight information region or exclusive economic zone. It has modern equipment and resources to ensure the shortest possible delays in bringing help to the scene.

Combining search and rescue resources into such a centre has been a recommendation of the International Civil Aviation Organisation and the International Maritime Organisation, which both recognise the importance of cooperation in air and sea rescue.

The JRCC will be officially opened in a short ceremony at the Seychelles Coast Guard naval base, with an opening address by Minister for Environment, Natural Resources and Transport Joel Morgan.