SINGAPORE - A guide for residents that lists emergency contacts and tips on what to do during a terrorist attack was launched on Sunday (May 29).
Called the Community Emergency Guide, it is a card with telephone numbers for emergency and non-emergency assistance.
It also has information such as how to operate a fire extinguisher as well as the police's Run, Hide, Tell advisory.
The advisory gives tips to residents on what to do during an attack involving firearms or weapons, such as evacuating an area under attack as soon as possible, finding cover and staying out of sight if escape is not possible, and calling the police on 999 to provide details about the attack.
The Community Emergency Guide was developed by grassroots members in Jurong GRC and will be rolled out to other constituencies in Singapore.
It was launched at the second revamped Emergency Preparedness Day at Jurong Spring, as part of a series of exercises to prepare people for possible terror scenarios.
The exercise is among new measures to increase vigilance and speed up security response under the national SG Secure programme.
At Sunday's exercise, a scenario was acted out in which a bag containing explosives left near an ATM was secured and diffused by specialists from the Singapore Armed Forces after they were alerted by residents. A resident also simulated a heart attack and was tended to by members of the People's Association Community Emergency Response Team.
Speaking at the event, Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and National Development Desmond Lee said that the threat of terrorism is real and Singapore faces "serious risks".
"The attacks in Paris last year as well as in Jakarta and Brussels this year show that terrorists are targeting major cities and hitting soft targets like public places and common congregation areas to inflict maximum casualties and damage," he said.
"We must be prepared and equip ourselves with the skills and knowledge on how to respond in the event of an attack, and how we can help others as well as ourselves and loved ones. If and when an attack occurs, we must also overcome adversity together as one people and must protect our unique social fabric and the harmony that we have built up painstakingly over all these years."
Just two days ago, six Bangladeshi workers, aged between 26 and 31, were charged with financing terrorism under the Terrorism (Suppression of Financing) Act. They had been detained here last month under the Internal Security Act for planning attacks back home in hopes of toppling the Bangladeshi government.
