When the tsunami swept the south of Thailand on Boxing Day 2004, many people had no idea what had hit them. Few realised that the sea receding in such a dramatic fashion was going to produce an incoming wall of water that eventually claimed the lives of more than a quarter of a million people.
Participants at the Red Bear Survival Camp learn how to use a plastic bag as an emergency face mask to help them breathe for a few minutes when a fire breaks out. Photo courtesy of Design for Disasters
Two months ago, Chiang Rai was hit by one of the worst earthquakes in the country’s modern history. Everyone knew what was happening, but like the southern region, they were totally unprepared.
Natural disasters are inevitable. Minimising the effects, however, is not taken seriously.
To help people create disaster awareness, a project was organised last month called “Red Bear Survival Camp for Thais”.
“We shouldn’t underestimate disasters as climate change may trigger more of them like the earthquake,” said Hirokazu Nagata, chairman of Plus Arts NPO, a Japanese non-profit group which organised the workshop on June 22 and 23.
Held at Somthawin School on Sukhumvit 62 Road, the workshop offered knowledge and survival skills to help individuals in case of an emergency or to prepare to survive for a few days before help arrives.
Mr Nagata noted the incidence of natural disasters had risen in recent decades. In the Philippines, for example, earthquakes were occurring in an area that had never had one before, so everyone should be aware of disasters, he said.
The Red Bear Survival Camp project was initiated in Japan following an earthquake in 2011 that shook the north of the country and triggered a massive tsunami that killed hundreds and left countless homeless.
“After the disaster, I thought we had to do something to help people to better prepare for a disaster. We have learned from our own experience that we can react well to an emergency, so the chance for safety and survival can be high,” Mr Nagata said.
The first Red Bear Survival Camp workshop featured two main sessions for teachers and then for students. The initial session drew about 200 participants, mainly school teachers and observers from companies in the area. The aim was to learn and to get them to pass on their knowledge to their families and co-workers.
The workshop is a joint project by Design for Disasters (D4D). Other supporters were the Japan Foundation Bangkok and the Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (APDC), which comes under the Interior Ministry’s Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation. Also involved was the Japanese Embassy.
In Japan, Mr Nagata said, the Red Bear Survival programme had been arranged more than 20 times in different earthquake-prone areas like Kobe to allow children, mainly at the primary school level, to plan and practise what they have to do and where to go in a natural disaster. They are given a test to ensure they are equipped with basic skills to be able to survive a disaster.
Mr Nagata said he developed the programme after accumulating knowledge through talking to victims who could provide him with new insights into the way to prepare for a disaster. First-hand experience of the victims also taught him such simple things as the impracticality of torches in certain disaster scenarios as a victim might need both hands to crawl or search for an exit.
Disaster relief centres are also important sources of information to draw up preparedness tips and risk reduction. He said the programme targets young children who are expected to pass on their skills to their parents as it is common for kids to discuss the details of their day with other family members.
“Skills should be cultivated at a very young age,” he said.
By attending the programme, Mr Nagata said, children are engaged in both educational and recreational activities, while making decisions and solving problems.
He said they have a chance to do creative tasks that help them to develop a wide range of skills that are important in an emergency. They know what steps to take and how to arrange basic first aid. The programme helps children get ready for when a disaster occurs. The children learn about the types of disaster and tips to deal with them through edutainment activities, rather than being preached to by teachers.
Mr Nagata said the programme arranged for Thais has been adjusted in accordance with common emergencies in the country like flash floods. The adjustment was made by volunteers who attended a workshop with D4D in February.
The programme is made up of 13 “stations” providing opportunities for children to learn how to survive in a disaster.
At station 1, participants learned how to use a plastic bag as a protective mask that allows them to breathe for a few minutes when a fire breaks out. They were trained how to use a fire extinguisher correctly to stop a small fire at station 2; and how to get unconscious victims from a scene with a blanket at station 3.
Asking for help is important in an emergency. At station 4, participants learned how to make a whistle from a straw to call for help in an emergency.
Station 5 was called Itsumo Mura — which is a village affected by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Here the participants learned how to use items like a jack and towels to help other victims in a collapsed building.
Station 6 allowed participants to remember, from a game, the important survival tools.
At station 7, which featured a board game, participants were to do different tasks that help them to learn to solve problems in an emergency.
Participants at station 8 learned the Japanese art of origami — the paper folding technique — which can help victims to make their own dishes and bowls for eating at a shelter when utensils are scarce.
At station 9, a card game called Disaster Life Cycle helped them to learn the priorities and dos and don’ts during a disaster.
Participants at station 10 were taught to make protective boots using a plastic garbage bag to prevent water-borne diseases during flooding.
The importance of flotation devices was highlighted at station 11. Here the participants learned to make an emergency life vest by attaching empty water bottles to their T-shirts.
At station 12, called the flood walk, participants were blindfolded and walked through the station; the aim was to teach them how to evacuate to higher ground through inundation during a flash flood.
The last station taught them how to save water for future use.
Somthawin School principal Orathai Piyapichetkul said the school realises the importance of survival skills and preparedness for teachers and students.
She said the programme was specially designed to fit situations in Thailand.
“The good thing about this programme is that children have a chance to learn survival skills while having fun at the same time,” said Ms Orathai.
She said teachers can apply what they have learned from the programme to their daily classes, for example how to tie a knot and fold a paper into a container.
Prasit Khumtong, an observer from Bangchak Petroleum Co Ltd, said the survival skills he learned from the workshop would be useful in the future.