ERUF breaks ground in Mandaue

CEBU, Philippines - The Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation (ERUF) broke ground for its new base yesterday at the North Reclamation Area in Mandaue City.

The groundbreaking ceremony came following the council’s approval for the use of a half-hectare lot owned by the city government without charge for five years.

Mayor Jonas Cortes, who attended the groundbreaking ceremony, is glad that ERUF is back in the city where it started.

ERUF was created during the reign of former Mandaue City Mayor Demetrio Cortes Sr., the incumbent mayor’s father, whose vision then was to create the “Best Rescue Unit in the country.”

Cortes said ERUF is located near the sea and near a helipad of the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC).

ERUF chairman Pek Eng Lim has thanked the city for its generosity.

He said that for years now, ERUF is known for its good service during calamities.

He said ERUF has several modern vehicles and state of the art rescue equipment.

“ERUF will not depend only on its workers and existing volunteers but rather much of its strength will come from fellow citizens who are willing and able to lend a hand on the event of an emergency so that others may live,” Pek Eng Lim said.

Herminio Cortes, the operations and training director of ERUF who is also the brother of Mayor Cortes, said ERUF has 60 volunteers which includes seven firetrucks, urban users, rescue vehicles, and other equipment donated by the Harlemmermer City in Holland.

The new site in the city is ERUF’s third base in the province.

It also has a base in Lapu-Lapu City and has another one in barangay Banilad, Cebu City. (FREEMAN)