The Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) has developed more than 1,000 specialized teams involving 100,000 personnel for emergency rescue duties, said officials of the organization at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday.
These teams conduct disaster relief, medical aid, water supply, public health services, emergency transport, psychological support, search and rescue, and aquatic rescue operations.
Wang Bin, vice president of the organization, reported that in 2024, the society conducted 565 emergency response missions and delivered 775,000 relief items.
"Based on the regional distribution features of disasters, we have established six major collaboration zones nationwide in east, southwest, northwest, central, south, and north China, and further optimized the rescue forces and resource allocation at the emergency response stage after disasters. This has significantly improved the frequency, efficiency, and quality of emergency responses," Wang said.
The RCSC, in collaboration with 13 government departments including the National Health Commission and Ministry of Education, has carried out emergency rescue trainings in communities, rural areas, schools, companies, government agencies, and households.
To date, China's Red Cross system has trained over 18 million licensed rescuers and installed more than 83,000 automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in schools, transportation hubs, tourist attractions and other public places.
"While promoting the installation of AEDs in public places, we have placed equal emphasis on training the public. We have compiled and published specialized textbooks on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and AED operation, and launched specific courses to enhance training on CPR and AED operation, so that more people could acquire these skills and become able and dare to use them at critical moments," said Bian Xiao, head of the RCSC's relief and health department.
For 27 consecutive years, the RCSC has conducted a charity campaign with the goal of offering support to families in hardships, benefiting over 20 million households in need. Over two decades, the organization has extended medical support to children suffering from leukemia and congenital heart disease, aiding a total of 107,000 children.
As of now, China has registered over 7.07 million organ donors, with 58,000 completed cases of posthumous organ donation. The Chinese Marrow Donor Program's database includes more than 3.6 million registered hematopoietic stem cell donors, achieving 20,000 transplants to date.
China's Red Cross develops 1,000 teams with 100,000 rescuers
