Thais Fail To Give Importance To 'National Disaster Warning Centre' Warnings

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Vital for public to heed NDWC warnings
By Thanatpong Kongsai
The Nation 2011-04-06

Over the past six years, the National Disaster Warning Centre has been monitoring weather conditions and disaster situations around the clock. However, despite this important task, if Thais fail to give importance to its warnings, the centre will largely be a meaningless agency.

The NDWC was established on May 30, 2005 following the December 26, 2004 tsunami, and was initially under the Secretariat of the Prime Minister. Now under the Office of the Permanent Secretary for Information and Communications Technology, the NDWC, located on Rattanathibet Road in Bangkok, is run by its sixth director, Somsak Khaosuwan.

With staff on duty 24 hours a day and responsible for early disasterwarning systems, the NDWC - comprising a general administration department, a warning system management subdivision, a planning subdivision, a warning and communication subdivision, a technical and warning system development subdivision, and the Communication Crisis Management Centre - has five main missions. They are: warning the public of any natural disasters; functioning as a centralised data centre relaying critical information; monitoring and studying disaster patterns and severity to inform disaster prevention and mitigation units; educating the public and officials about disasters; and arranging drills with related agencies.

Although the 8.9magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan on March 11 did not affect the Kingdom, Thais were concerned about what happened. The recent 6.9magnitude quake in Burma, which shook northern Thailand and caused one death, added to those worries. The NDWC immediately had experts assessing the quake impacts, looking at whether there was the chance of a tsunami and, if so, at what time it would strike.

The centre coordinates with agencies such as the Thai Meteorological Department, the Mineral Resources Department, the Hydrographic Department, the Water Resources Department, the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, the Royal Irrigation Department, the Pollution Control Department, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, the Royal Forest Department and the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department.

It also coordinates with international agencies such as the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre, the Japan Meteorological Agency, the US Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the EuropeanMediterranean Seismological Centre.

The NDWC operates hotlines 111 and 192 to gather disaster reports and updates round the clock, while opening radio communication channels on VSF and its own central network to warn radio amateurs in affected provinces.

NDWC officials are also on hand to assess weather images from a satellite above Thailand, so that any gathering storms are spotted and warnings can be issued in time.

In the face of an upcoming disaster, the centre issues warnings to the public via a number of channels, including cellphone text messaging, the television, 280 radio stations, fax, the Internet as well as Facebook and Twitter, so that people can prepare themselves or evacuate risky areas.

Somsak affirms that Thailand is unlikely to be severely affected by quakes, as it is located on "small branch" fault lines - unlike Japan, which is located on the Pacific "Ring of Fire".

"The safest place in Japan during a disaster will be like the most dangerous place in Thailand," he said.

With floods and landslides currently ravaging southern Thailand, the NDWC has served as the mass communication channel for spreading news and updates prior to, during and after the disaster.

Calling on Thais to prepare a survival kit comprising rice, radio, flashlight, medicines, valuables and important documents just in case of an emergency, the NDWC chief also urges communities to have an evacuation plan and a safe route map, and to inform community members about them.

Regarding the radiation threat following the nuclear disaster in Japan, the NDWC exchanges data with the Office of Atoms for Peace in detecting radiation levels via eight regional stations in order to put together information for the public and prevent unnecessary panic.

Every step along the way, the NDWC keeps a watchful eye for Thais and urges them to be cautious and learn about disasters, so that they can survive them and minimise losses. But if the public fails to attach sufficient importance to disaster warnings, the centre will be a largely meaningless agency.