Flood Preparedness Drills Conducted in Kailali Communities

Kailali. Artificial sample drills on measures to prevent floods have been conducted in 32 communities in the coastal areas of Pathariya and Karnali rivers. The drills were conducted to alert 32 communities at risk of floods in Tikapur and Janaki rural municipalities of Kailali, covering topics such as risks arising from floods and measures to prevent them.

During the sample drills, locals reported gaining practical knowledge on how to stay safe during floods, rescue, and evacuation to safe places. The sample drills were organized by local disaster management committees in collaboration with Tikapur Municipality, Janaki Rural Municipality, and Practical Action B Group.

The sample drills were based on three phases, including alertness, warning levels, and danger levels, informed Phul Kumari Chaudhary, chairperson of the local disaster management committee. Bhartapur, Ward No. 6 of Tikapur, has 84 houses. Every year during the monsoon, there is a risk of floods here due to the Pathariya river.

Committee chairperson Chaudhary mentioned that a two-story high and safe house has been arranged for the affected to stay in case of floods. During the sample drills, children, the elderly, disabled individuals, and those injured by floods in the community were rescued and brought in. She also stated that the search and rescue teams and first aid teams formed in the community were activated during the flood.

Committee chairperson Chaudhary urged locals to support each other and participate in rescue efforts during floods, just as they did in the sample drills. "We have informed them who and where to contact in an emergency. We learned that emergency numbers should also be kept safe," she said, adding, "We prioritized the safety of children, the elderly, and disabled citizens during the drills." Local Ashadevi Chaudhary said that information was received on paying attention to early warnings during disasters, disaster preparedness, preventive measures, and precautions to be taken during rescue operations.

Ward member of Tikapur Rural Municipality-6, Purna Bahadur Nayak, said that the community should be alert to believe early warnings during floods and to move everyone to safe places on time. "We are conducting awareness programs, including sample drills, with the objective of making the community capable of facing flood-related disasters," he said, "Only when the community is aware and prepared will there be less damage during disasters."

Anju Chaudhary, program officer at Practical Action B Group, said that the sample drills were conducted to teach locals in the coastal areas of the Karnali and Pathariya rivers how to stay safe during floods. She stated that the community was alerted on how to stay safe if there were alertness levels, warning levels, and danger levels, and that artificial incident drills were conducted based on three stages of information.

In Kailali's Tikapur Municipality alone, there are more than 80 community-level disaster management committees. These committees also have search and rescue and first aid teams. The municipality, with the support of various organizations, has been working on their capacity building.