The drill is part of a series of mass tsunami-evacuation exercises being held throughout all six Andaman coast provinces under the banner of the Integrated Disaster Management Exercise (IDMEx 2019: TSUNAMI), explained an advisory from the Phuket Provincial office of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket).
The IDMEx 2019 will see mass tsunami-evacuation drills conducted in Ranong, Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, Trang and Satun over two days, next Monday and Tuesday (June 24-25), it added,
The evacuation exercise in Patong will last two hours, from 1:30pm to 3:30pm, the DDPM-Phuket advisory noted.
Similar tsunami-evacuation drills will be held in Baan Bang Baen in Ranong, at Baan Nam Khem in Takupa, Phang Nga, and at Haad Suu San Hoi (Fossil Shell Beach) in Ao Nang, Krabi from 10:30am to midday next Monday (June 24).
Tsunami-evacuation drills will be held in Trang and Satun from 1:30pm to 3:30pm, also on Monday (June 24).
This Friday (June 21), evacuation training for community leaders and local business owners will be held at the Patong Municipality offices, starting at 1pm.
Next Wednesday (June 26), a meeting will be at the DDPM Region 18 Phuket office in Phuket Town to review the exercise and make any adjustments necessary, the advisory explained.
A further review and “Table Top Exercise” will be held at the Novotel Phuket Phokeethra hotel in Phuket Town from 9am to 4pm on June 28, followed by a “Functional Exercise” held at Phuket Provincial Hall from 9am to 4:30pm on July 1, the advisory added.
From July 4-6, evacuation drill exercises will be held at the Phuket Deep Sea Port at Ao Makham, Wichit, followed by a review of the exercise at the Phuket Deep Sea Port on July 7.
“Those who living in the evacuation drill areas, please join the evacuation drills at the set locations and times,” the DDPM asked in its notice.
People seeking more information were urged to call the DDPM 24-hour hotline 1784.
The tsunami evacuation routes for the popular tourist beaches at Patong, Kamala, Kata and Karon, and elsewhere in Phuket’s main coastal areas, were to undergo a full review as of last September, after a devastating earthquake and tsunami struck the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, leaving nearly 2,000 people dead, some 5,000 believed missing and more than 74,000 homeless. (See story here.)
Experts feared that another tsunami could hit Indonesia after more than 200 people were killed and more than 1,000 people were injured at the southern end of Sumatra by a wave triggered by the eruption of a volcano known as the “child” of Krakatoa in December. (See story here.)