Vice
President U Henry Van Thi called for taking preventive measures for natural
disasters seasonally and regionally yesterday as he addressed the National
Natural Disaster Management Committee (1/2018) held at the Ministry of Social
Welfare, Relief and Resettlement in Nay Pyi Taw.
The
Vice President urged the members of the committee to discuss early preventive
measures for both the approaching rainy season and unpredictable earthquakes,
implementing the early preventive measures, and for the committee to be
constantly alert for natural disaster management. He urged for punctual
execution in natural disaster management concerning seasonally and regionally
susceptible natural disasters.
On
24 April in Southern Pradesh in India, a series of 36,749 lightning bolts
struck the state within a 13-hour timeframe, killing nine people. Since 2015,
lightning strikes have killed 2,000 people every year, according to news
reports. In Myanmar, between April 2017 and March 2018, 109 lightning strikes
were reported around the country, killing 101 people and injuring 39. The Vice
President said the approaching rainy season will possibly bring strong winds,
storms, cyclones, heavy rains, lightning strikes, hail, floods, flash floods,
and landslides and therefore early preventive measures should be discussed as
soon as possible.
The
Vice President also mentioned secondary disasters that can originate from a
primary disaster in another area. He gave an example of a cyclone that once
passed through Chittagong in Bangladesh into Maungtaw in Myanmar, bringing
torrential rainfall in northern Myanmar and flash floods in Magway Region that
resulted in 46 deaths and 115 disappearances of people. Looking at this, it is
necessary to prepare for secondary disasters, said the Vice President.
The
Vice President then said it was also necessary to prepare emergency response
strategies and resettlement plans. He said it involved building houses in areas
least likely to be affected by natural disasters as well as preplanning and
cooperating with relevant ministries to reinstate transportation, rebuild roads
and schools, and administer healthcare immediately after the effects of a
natural disaster.
The
Vice President said systematic long-term development goals and sustainability
towards natural disasters must be included in resettlement plans. He mentioned
that Myanmar was located on the Sagaing Fault, the biggest continental
transform fault in Southeast Asia, which cuts through Yangon, Bago, Toungoo,
Nay Pyi Taw, Mandalay, and Myitkyina and was connected to other fault lines in
Eastern Myanmar, Shan Hills, Laos, Thailand, and China.
The
Vice President said there was some fear among the people from small-scale
earthquakes that frequently occur such as the Pyu earthquake, and the ones in Kalay
township, Chauk township, and Nay Pyi Taw. He said the public must be properly
informed and ready for unpredictable earthquakes. To this end, he asked the
committee members to evaluate to what extent these measures have been
implemented and to cooperate with relevant ministries, region and state
authorities to implement early preventive measures.
The
Vice President also said that the committee should discuss strengthening or
planning standard operating procedures (SOP) for earthquakes in various ministries.
He also said the public needed greater awareness on earthquakes and its effects
and more practice drills. He said new buildings must be checked for adherence
to standard building codes and existing settlements built on fault lines should
be carefully scrutinized and followed up with necessary plans. He mentioned
that systematic implementation of preparedness, response and recovery in
natural disaster management will prepare society for resiliently handling
natural disasters.
Next,
Committee Secretary Deputy Minister U Soe Aung explained the implementation
process of the results from the committee meeting (2/2017) with relevant
ministries and region and state authorities.
MNA
Ref;
The Global New Light of Myanmar
No comments:
Post a Comment