Shri Lanka DMA

8/16/2019 Shri Lanka DMA

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/shri-lanka-dma 1/19

http://www.jamco.or.jp/en/symposium/21/3/ 12.03.2016

21st JAMCO Online nternational !ymposium

March 1" to !eptem#er 1$% 2013

&sunami 'esponse !ystems an( the 'ole o) Asia*s +roa(casters

&sunami ,isaster -reention in !ri ana

Mohamed Shareef ASEES

Visiting Lecturer, Colombo University, Sri Lanka

A#stract

The urose of this article is to e!lore ho" the Sri Lankan government has imroved the

Tsunami #isaster $revention Systems in Sri Lanka% A secial focus "ill be given to the role of

&roadcasters and international organi'ations on disaster management% (t has been eight years

since the (ndian )cean tsunami hit Sri Lanka% Since then the Sri Lankan government has been

focusing more on disaster revention and initiating several develoment ro*ects at various

levels to educate the eole and rotect them from disasters + tsunami% This research covers

four ma*or toics, namely the role of Sri Lankan government, the role of media -

broadcasters, the role of international organi'ations, and some selected develoment ro*ects

on disaster management at various levels .national, community, and village/% )ne of the key

findings of this research is that the Sri Lankan government has set u a good disaster

management net"ork system from to to bottom, in other "ords from national + government

level to grass root levels%

0.1ey "ords Tsunami, Early 2arnings, #isaster $revention, Media and &roadcasters/

1. ntro(uction

)ne of the "orld3s "orst natural disasters, causing more than 455,555 deaths affecting over

67 nations in t"o continents occurred in #ecember 89th, 855:% The tsunami "aves that struck

nearly 8+4 of the Sri Lankan coastal belt resulted in 47,485 confirmed deaths and 9,455

missing eole% The economic loss has been estimated at US; 8%8 billion, disregarding the

cost of social disorder% <early 769,655 "ere dislaced of "hich 44= "ere belo" the overty

line% >?,555 d"elling houses and @7= of the fishing fleet, "hich "as the main livelihood of

the coastal oulation, "ere damaged% More than 755 tourism related business, "hich "as the

main source of income in this area "as damaged% 84,::> acres of agricultural lands "ere

destroyed% 855 education institutes "ere damaged and :75 others "ere used as temorarycams for (nternally #islaced $eole .(#$s/% The "orld3s "orst train tragedy killing 6,895



assengers also haened on this tsunami day .ayantha Banatunga 8557 68/%

The lack of rearedness to face such a crisis comounded this situation% The 6st "ave, "hich

"as less ferocious, instead of treating as a "arning sign, sadly brought in a much larger cro"d

of curious onlookers to the beach to observe this unusual henomenon resulting in much

larger loss of lives by the most ferocious 8nd "ave that follo"ed 45 minutes later% The 4rd

and :th "aves killed even more eole "ho "ere either rescuing the dro"ned or salvaging

valuables% $eole in the southern coast comletely ignored the tsunami destruction that

occurred in the eastern coast nearly :5 minutes before it hit the southern coast .(bid% 8557 8/%

This indicates that the early "arning message "as not transmitted at the time of tsunami in Sri

Lanka%

Much of these deaths "ould have been avoided if early tsunami detection and "arning

systems "ere in lace as the earthDuake occurred nearly 4 hours before the tsunami reached

Sri Lanka% According to ayantha Banatunga .8557/, the absence of early "arning system "as

one of the main causes for the large number of deaths in the country% e further added that

this "as artly due to the fact that no tsunami "arning system e!isted in the (ndian ocean,

"hich "as considered as a safe region, unlike the more tsunami rone $acific ocean%

Most geologists and decision makers have underestimated the otential of tsunami threat fromthe highly active F<orthern end of the Sunda TrenchG .earlier kno"n as the ava Trench

located in the northeastern (ndian ocean, near (ndonesia/% Even the 6>:6 tsunami that caused

over 7,555 deaths in the eastern (ndian coast "as mistaken as a Fstorm surgeG .(bid% 8557 4/%

Even if the $acific Tsunami 2arning Center .$T2C/ "as a"are of the tsunami threat, they

had no contact erson in (ndia, Sri Lanka or Thailand to communicate such a "arning% #ue to

the absence of a tsunami rearedness rogram they could not inform the eole and reDuest

them to follo" an effective safety rocedure to be a"ay from the tsunami tidal "aves% Thelack of a"areness and rearedness "ere the causes of large number of deaths in Sri Lanka%

This aalling situation of the absence of early "arning system and a "ay of communicating

the danger "as "ell demonstrated in Sri Lanka .(bid% 8557 :/%

Many lives in the southern and "estern coasts could have been saved if they "ere informed of

the danger "hen the "aves hit the east coast of Sri Lanka nearly 45 minutes earlier% Even the

comaratively "eak 6st "ave and the receding of "ater from the coast "ere comletely

ignored as a "arning signal% Tragically, this unusual ocean henomenon brought in much

more curious onlookers to the beach from safer areas to succumb to the more ferocious 8nd



"ave% Even the 4rd and :th "aves caused loss of lives indicating comlete ignorance of the

dangers of tsunami "aves% Hor >>= of Sri Lankans, tsunami "as an alien "ord heard for the

first time%

This lack of a"areness is unardonable as Sri Lanka3s local tradition hold that, overflo" of

the ocean occurred several times during its history, submerging large areas of the country% The

6st recorded tsunamilike event dates back to 855 &C .over 8,855 years ago/% According to

Maha"ansa .a historical book about Sri Lanka/, mighty "aves submerged several villages for

miles around 1elaniya, the caital of the king 1elanitissa3s rinciality% According to

Ba*avaliya .a historical narratives about Sinhalese kings in Sri Lanka/, 655 seaort to"ns and

>@5 fisherman villages "ere overrun by the sea "aves% The tsunami triggered by the erution

of the 1rakatoa volcanic island in (ndonesia on the 8@th of August, 6??4 reached Sri Lankaaround 6%45 m% The sea receded e!osing the seabed for 85 to @5 fathoms from the shore for

fe" minutes, but fortunately the tidal "aves did not return% The "aves "ere only : feet above

the sea and only t"o deaths "ere reorted, "ith no records of roerty damage% The above

e!amles sho" that tsunami "as not a ne" henomenon in the Sri Lankan history, but most

of the Sri Lankans did not kno" "hat it is e!actly and ho" much damage it can do to the

eole%

The Sri Lankan government and the scientific community "ere harshly critici'ed for their failure to "arn the coastal eole% The media "as articularly critical of the role layed by the

$allekele seismological station .early "arning center/% They could not understand that the

automatic unmanned station could not redict the tsunami "aves% This station recorded the

tremor @ minutes after the earthDuake and immediately transmitted the data% o"ever, due to

the lack of a"areness and limitation of media coverage it did not reach the eole%

This research aims to cover the follo"ing four toics, namely the role of Sri Lankan

government, the role of media - broadcasters, the role of international organi'ations, andsome selected develoment ro*ects for the tsunami victims% The author has conducted a fe"

intervie"s and gathered data at various levels such as the Ministry of #isaster Management,

#isaster Management Centre, Sri Lankan broadcasting cororation, United <ations

#eveloment $rograms, and some school rincials, community leaders, religious leaders and

fishermen both in Colombo and Ialle districts in Sri Lanka% The follo"ing section "ill

e!lain the role of Sri Lankan government on disaster revention systems in Sri Lanka%

2. &he 'ole o) !ri anan oernment on ,isaster -reention



)ver the ast fe" decades, disaster losses in Sri Lanka have increased substantially% The

country is rone to natural disasters caused by floods, cyclones, landslides, droughts and

coastal erosion "ith increasing instances of ha'ards related to environmental ollution% The

devastation caused by the (ndian ocean tsunami of 855: has highlighted that Sri Lanka is also

vulnerable to lo"freDuency, high imact events "hich cause e!tensive damage and reverse

years of develoment gains% (n the ast fe" years, the Sri Lankan government has been taking

significant stes to"ards strengthening the legislative and institutional arrangements for the

disaster risk management% The follo"ing table sho"s the role of Sri Lankan government from

6>@@ to the resent 8564%

&a#le: 1 &he 'ole o) the !ri anan oernment

.Source

$reared by the author based on various reorts and research materials/%

The above table sho"s that, the Sri Lankan government has been laying a key role on



disaster management from the 6>@5s% o"ever, the role of Sri Lankan government has been

dramatically increased articularly in the aftermath of the tsunami% (t is noted that in 8557

right after the tsunami, the Sri Lankan government assed a legislative act .$arliamentary Act

<o%64/ and established a Cabinet Ministry called as the Ministry of #isaster Management and

uman Bights and created a coule of arliament committees and develoment authorities for

the disaster management in Sri Lanka% The follo"ing section "ill e!lain the role of Ministry

of #isaster Management and uman Bights in Sri Lanka%

2.1. Ministry o) ,isaster Manaement an( 4uman 'ihts

The Ministry of #isaster Management and uman Bights "as established in 8557% The main

urose of this Ministry "as to facilitate harmony, roserity and dignity of human lifethrough effective revention and mitigation of natural and manmade disasters, "hile

romoting human rights in Sri Lanka% The key activities of the ministry are categori'ed into

three main areas .6/ #isaster revention, mitigation, rearedness and early resonse for

oulation vulnerable to disasters, .8/ )verall coordination of ostdisaster activities such as

relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction and .4/ $romotion of human rights of all Sri Lankans%

The follo"ing frame"ork6 sho"s the organi'ational structure of the Ministry of #isaster

Management and uman Bights%

5ramewor: 1 Ministry o) ,isaster Manaement 7 4uman 'ihts 8Orani9ational

structure

.Source

Ministry of #isaster Management in Sri Lanka J home age J 8568/%



According to the frame"ork6, the Ministry of #isaster Management has five divisions, each

division connected "ith each other and focuses on various issues "ith regard to disaster

management% The <ational Council for #isaster Management .<C#M/ is in charge for social

services, rehabilitation and reconstruction% #eartment of Meteorology .#)M/ is in charge

for early "arning services% #isaster Management Centre .#MC/ is in charge for overall

ro*ects imlementations% <ational &uilding Besearch )rgani'ation .<&B)/ is in charge for

disaster mitigation, rearedness and safety through innovative disaster education - research%

<ational #isaster Belief Centre .<#BC/ is in charge for lanning and imlementation

rograms to meet imact of disasters% Although there are five divisions function under the

Ministry of #isaster Management, the #isaster Management Centre .#MC/ is imortant and

lays a central role on disaster management in Sri Lanka% The follo"ing section "ill e!lain

the role of #MC%

2.2. ,isaster Manaement Centre 8,MC

The #isaster Management Center .#MC/ "as established under the <ational Council for

#isaster Management .<C#M/ in accordance "ith the Sri Lanka #isaster Management Act

<o% 64 of 8557% The aim of #MC is to create a culture of safety among communities and the

nation at large through systematic management of natural, technological and manmade

disaster risks% #MC has four divisions, namely Mitigation #eveloment #ivision .M##/,$rearedness $lanning #ivision .$$#/, Emergency )erations #ivision .E)#/, and

Education - $ublic A"areness #ivision .E$A#/% Hollo"ing frame"ork 8 e!lains each of

these divisions in detail%

5ramewor: 2 ,isaster Manaement Centre 8Orani9ational !tructure



.Source

#isaster Management Centre .#MC/ in Sri Lanka J home age J 8568/%

According to the frame"ork8, the Mitigation #eveloment #ivision .M##/ is resonsible

for the national level disaster mitigations, risk reduction based on structural and nonstructural

activities% $rearedness $lanning #ivision .$$#/ is in charge for rearation, revie"ing and

udating national disaster management lan and national emergency oeration lan%Emergency )erations #ivision .E)#/ is an imortant rereDuisite for effective and

coordinated resonse to any emergency% Education - $ublic A"areness #ivision .E$A#/

generally rovides training and ublic a"areness for relevant agencies in Sri Lanka%

Hollo"ing section "ill e!lain the role of media on tsunami disaster revention in Sri Lanka%

3. &he 'ole o) Me(ia on &sunami ,isaster -reention

Media can lay a significant role in creating a"areness about disasters among common

masses and thus reduce disaster risks% #uring disaster situations, media should not only

inform the ublic "ith timely and factual information but also to advice the ublic about

actions to be taken .e%g% evacuation, useful tis, techniDues, do3s and dont3s etc%/ and also

inform on actions being taken by authorities and aid grous and relief organi'ations% #uring

an emergency, the media should be sensitive to the needs of the ublic in affected areas and

should avoid misinforming and broadcasting unconfirmed reorts that may lead to desair and

anic% Beliable and timely information rovided through the media can hel eole overcome

unnecessary fear and fatalism during and after an emergency% Hor the media to fill these roles



most effectively, the government, the scientific and disaster mitigation organi'ations need to

establish and strengthen "orking relationshis "ith the media%

Media lays a rominent role in Sri Lanka, covering the entire island through television and

HM radios "ith more than 75 channels% $rior to the tsunami in 855: there "as no such

net"ork or emergency broadcasting centers in Sri Lanka% o"ever, after the tsunami the Sri

Lankan government has established an Emergency )eration Centre .E)C/ and introduced

various early "arning systems in the country% According to a media sokeserson in Sri

Lanka, the role of domestic media "as very limited during the tsunami in 855:% Most of the

tsunami related videos "ere documented and telecasted by the foreign media "hen comared

to local media in Sri Lanka% The lack of a"areness and rearedness "ere identified as the

causes for these situations% e further added that the media can be divided into t"ocategories electronic media and social media% Electronic media is a media that use electronics

or electromechanical energy for the enduser .audience/ to access the content "here as social

media refers to the interaction of eole in "hich they create, share, e!change and comment

contents among them in virtual communities and net"orks% (n the case of Sri Lanka, both

media .electronic and social/ have imroved a lot in the ost tsunami eriod .after 8557/% This

"ill be e!lained in detail at section 4%6, 4%8, and 4%4%

3.1. ;merency Operations Centre 8;OC

Emergency )erations Centre .E)C/ is an imortant rereDuisite for effective and

coordinated resonse to any emergency% The E)C is oerating on 8:K@ basis and coordinates

all incident information of disasters and resources for management% (t receives, analy'es, and

dislay information about the incident to enable decisionmaking% The E)C also finds,

rioriti'e, deloy, and track critical resources% (t enhances decisionmaking, communication,

collaboration, and coordination% The E)C has all necessary eDuiment "ith conference

facilities and dislay systems% (t comrises one fullfledged oeration room, one control roomthat is 8:K@ oerational and one communication room to manage all communication

eDuiment% $ublic can call on hot line numbers to inform emergencies% There are several

hone numbers that are available for the ublic to contact the E)C% #isaster Management

Centre .#MC/ is currently roceeding "ith this establishment of 8:K@ call centers for

emergencies + disasters%

#isaster Management Centre .#MC/ is the main focal oint resonsible for coordinating

early "arning messages, along "ith the relevant technical agencies and technical committees%

The multiha'ard early "arning dissemination division of the #MC "ill be in constant



coordination "ith all technical agencies resonsible for natural and manmade ha'ards, and in

instances of any imminent disaster it "ill take action to inform the resonsible officers for

on"ard communication to the subnational levels and communities% The follo"ing

frame"ork4, e!lains the structure of <ational Emergency )eration Centre .E)C/ in Sri

Lanka%

5ramewor: 3 <ational ;merency Operation Centre

.Source

#isaster Management Centre .#MC/ J Beort in 8568/%

According to the frame"ork4, the national emergency oeration centre receives information

from various sources such as international - regional disaster "arning centers, tsunami multi

ha'ard "arning centers, disaster management centers, emergency service roviders, civil

society, <I)s, olice, military etc, and communicates "ith relevant agencies or authorities to

inform the eole in case of disaster or tsunami%

The follo"ings are some of the key resonsibilities of E)C .6/ Maintaining and oerating

early "arning to"ers and other early "arning dissemination eDuiments, .8/ #issemination of

early "arning messages and ensure the recetion at remote vulnerable villagers, .4/ Co

ordination of donor assistance to strengthen caacity of technical agencies for early "arning,

.:/ (nitiating a"areness on activities related to early "arning among the various agencies and

ublic, and .7/ Iuiding district disaster management units in coordinating and imlementing

"arning disseminationrelated activities in the rovince, district, and local authority levels%



3.2. ;arly =arnin !ystems

(n Sri Lanka there "ere no early "arning systems for a tsunami rior to 855:% #ifferent

government institutions are mandated to monitor and issue early "arnings in the case of

different ha'ards% Hor e!amle, Meteorology #eartment .M#/ for "eather related issues, the

<ational ADuatic Besources Agency .<ABA/ for )ceanic, Ieological Surveys and Mines

&ureau .ISM&/ for seismological and <ational &uilding Besearch )rgani'ation .<&B)/ for

landslides% After the Tsunami, an (nterim committee + $arliamentary committee on early

"arning system "as set u in 8557% #eartment of Meteorology "as designated as the

tsunami early "arning centre for Sri Lanka% Meteorology deartment is connected "ith the

follo"ing authorities $acific Tsunami 2arning Centre .$T2C/, aanese Meteorological

Centre .MC/, and California (ntegrated Seismic Centre .C(SC/% The follo"ing table8 sho"sho" the early "arning message asses to the Meteorology deartment from various

authorities and deartments "ithin a fe" minutes in Sri Lanka%

&a#le: 2 ;arly =arnins on &sunami in !ri ana

.Source $reared by the author based on the #MC Beort in 8568/%

According to the tableJ8, there are four organi'ations "hich mentioned above are resonsible

to monitor the earthDuake + tsunami and transfer the information to the relevant authority%

The above table sho"s that "ithin 45 minutes the early "arning can be reached to the

Meteorology deartment in Sri Lanka%

The establishment of a tsunami early "arning system in the (ndian ocean is romoted mainly by U<ESC) in resonse to the U< 2orld conference on disaster reduction held in aan in



anuary 8557% The first t"o early"arning buoys "ere deloyed in the coastal "aters of

Sumatra in mid<ovember 8557% The sevenmeter buoys are connected to ressure sensors on

the seabed and "ill send information to a central station on the (ndonesian mainland by

satellite% Scientists "ill analy'e the data and decide "hether to raise an alarm or not%

(n the case of Sri Lanka, the deartment of meteorology and #isaster Management Centre

.#MC/ are resonsible for receiving tsunami early "arnings% According to the Tsunami

$revention Act <o% 64 in 8557, the #isaster Management Centre .#MC/ is resonsible to

release the early "arnings to the ublic via the media and relevant authorities% The rocess of

early "arnings goes from national level, rovincial level, district level, and village levels%

Begarding the national level, there are seven national TV stations "hich have early "arningunits, seven national radio stations "hich have 8:K@ emergency oeration centers, 4: national

early "arning to"ers "hich ass the early "arning signals to the Meteorology deartment and

telehone call services are resonsible to inform to the eole about the disaster revention in

Sri Lanka% At the rovincial level there are some regional radio centers, telehone oerators,

disaster management coordinators, olice and military communicators that are resonsible for

assing the message to the eole% At the village level, telehone calls, early "arning

subcommittee, olice vehicles, <I)s and C&) "orkers, temle and church bells, ush

bicycle and motorcycle messengers are resonsible to inform the eole% The follo"ing tablesho"s some TV and radio channels, ne"s alert, and ne"s "ebsites that rovide early

"arnings to the eole in Sri Lanka%

&a#le: 3 ;arly =arnins throuh Me(ia

.Source

$reared by the author based on the #MC Beort in 8568/%



3.3. &he 'ole o) +roa(casters

&roadcasters can lay a key role on disaster revention% (t is reorted that broadcasters should

educate eole about the natural disasters and calm them do"n after a natural disaster strikes,

as "ell as revent anic and the sread of rumors% A *ournalist from (ndia said broadcasters

there had not carried a tsunami "arning during the tsunami% F(f "e had, erhas eole could

have moved to safer areas% &ut there "as no system to give us a "arning%G (n fact, television

is an essential "itness to this reconstruction% &roadcasters are in a osition to hel the eole

"ho are suffering by letting the "orld kno" of their situations and needs% More lives may be

saved in the future by raising a"areness of natural disasters and recautionary measures%

(n Sri Lanka, the role of broadcasters "as very limited during the tsunami in 855:% (n fact,there "as no secial committee or grou among the broadcasters to educate the eole or

assist them to evacuate from disaster areas% Some broadcasters ointed out that "hen tsunami

haened most of the broadcasters "ere out of the station and there "as no connection or

net"orks among them% (t took nearly 65 hours to gather some broadcasters and have rimary

meeting "ith them .(ntervie" "ith several broadcasters in Sri Lanka, #ecember 67th, 8568/%

o"ever, after the tsunami, the Sri Lankan government focused more on the disaster

management and established some emergency teams that include broadcasters and ne"saer reorters% The main urose of this recruitment is to educate the eole and direct them

to"ard safe evacuation% (n fact, it is imortant to educate the eole and direct them to a safe

area and mobili'e the outsiders so that the victims can get assistance from the outsiders% (t is

reorted that "hen tsunami haened in 855: in Sri Lanka, the reliminary meeting held "ith

the broadcasters decided to oen an emergency oeration center "ithin the remises of Sri

Lanka broadcasting centre and send broadcaster team to collect food, clothes and basic needs

from other arts of Sri Lanka and send the assistance to the tsunami victims% This tsunami

assistance has become to kno"n as Ftsunami sahanaG .secial relief for tsunami victims/%Even no" many broadcasters and TV channels conduct this rogram "hen natural disaster

haens in Sri Lanka%

Aart from the relief assistance, the broadcasters also began to collect some information about

the tsunami and telecasted a tsunami a"areness rograms via the Stateo"ned television

called Sri Lanka Buavahini Cooeration% Moreover, the broadcasters also began to contact

some foreign media and mobili'ed their suort for the immediate assistance from various

countries% (t is noted that "hen tsunami haened in 855: in Sri Lanka, (ndia sent five

helicoters and 65 rescue teams to save the eole from the tragedy% This indicates that



broadcasters can lay a ma*or role in assisting the eole during natural disasters%

". &he 'ole o) nternational Orani9ations

(nternational organi'ations have been laying a key role on the issue of tsunami disaster

revention in Sri Lanka% (t is reorted that more than 75 organi'ations both local and

international engaged on the disaster revention and rovided a huge amount of money to

build houses and imrove their livelihood issues% (n order to bring back the normalcy among

the tsunami victims many international organi'ations and institutions began to "ork "ith the

Sri Lankan government% As a result the Sri Lankan government introduced FA Boad MaG for

disaster risk management to"ard a safer Sri Lanka in 8557% This road ma is focused onseven thematic comonents and focuses in more than 655 disaster management ro*ects that

aim to rovide services on human rights, conflict resolution, and caacity building% These

ro*ects can be divided into three categories shortterm ro*ects, midterm ro*ects, and long

term ro*ects% Shortterm ro*ects mainly focus on the relief assistance such as food, shelter

.temorary/, and livelihood issues% Midterm ro*ects mainly focus on the recovery issue%

Longterm ro*ects focus on infrastructure and develoment issues% (t is reorted that the Sri

Lankan government has allocated US; 8?,555 for the ro*ects on tsunami disaster

management from 8557 to 8567% The imlementation of ro*ects can be divided into threesections, namely at the national level, community level, and school levels% This "ill be

e!lained in detail at section :%6, :%8, and :%4%

".1. ,eelopment -rojects at the <ational eel

There are more than 85 national ro*ects launched by the Sri Lankan government and

international organi'ations to strengthen the disaster management systems in Sri Lanka% The

follo"ings are some of the national level ro*ects technology ro*ects on disaster management, coastal 'one management ro*ects, and mangrove ro*ects% Technology ro*ects

on disaster management mainly focus on the early "arning systems% (t is reorted that there

are 4: early "arning to"ers and centers built by the government from 8557 to 8568% Coastal

'one management ro*ects mainly focuses on the F&uffer oneG% (n 8557, right after the

tsunami, the Sri Lankan government declared that the residents should build and o"n their

houses and roerties 655 meters a"ay from the beach% These 655 meters are considered as a

buffer 'one "here nobody can o"n a business or hysical roerty% o"ever, there are some

buildings and roerties are still located "ithin the &uffer one% This can be seen mainly in

the Ialle district in Sri Lanka%



".2. ,eelopment -rojects at the Community eel

According to FA Boad MaG for disaster management in Sri Lanka .8557/, there "ere 75

community level ro*ects that "ere marked by the government and international

organi'ations% The uroses of these ro*ects "ere to imrove the livelihood issues and

increase their caacity building% (t is reorted that the community level ro*ects mainly

focused on three grous, namely the religious grous, fishing community, and <I)s + C&)s%

Beligious community can lay a ma*or role in disaster management% Sri Lanka is a multi

religious country "here &uddhist .@8=/, indu .67=/, Muslims .>=/, and Christians .:=/

have been living for a long time in almost every arts of the country% According to a &uddhistmonk in Ialle district, there are several religious grous that conduct reaches and "orkshos

about the disaster revention in Sri Lanka% Begarding the fishing community, the Sri Lankan

government has introduced some ro*ects among the fishermen and created some net"orks

among them so that they can ass the messages and make recautions in case of emergency%

Aart from this, there are some <I)s and C&)s such as Sarvodaya, Bural #eveloment

)rgani'ations, and Seva Lanka that are also "orking for disaster management at the

community level% (t is noted that the community level ro*ects have imroved the kno"ledge

of disaster management among the eole%

".3. ,eelopment -rojects at the !chool eel

The (ndian )cean tsunami in 855: clearly demonstrated that the oulation of Sri Lanka "as

not reared to deal "ith the ha'ards threatening them% The oulace did not recogni'e the

risks, did not kno" ho" to rotect them, and in decisive moments often resonded

inaroriately% Hor e!amle, many Sri Lankans actually ran out onto the beach as the sea

receded dramatically in the dra"back *ust before the flood "ave came crashing ashore, and"ere thus lured to their deaths% Education is deemed to lay a key role in this conte!t as a

vehicle for communicating the kno"ledge and skills necessary for reducing vulnerability and

achieving a culture of disaster safety or revention% The Sri Lankan government and many

international organi'ations launched several ro*ects on disaster management% (t is also

reorted that both the Sri Lankan government and some international organi'ations have

conducted some "orkshos and seminars among the university lectures, graduates, teachers

and school children in many arts of Sri Lanka% The main urose of these "orkshos and

seminars are to educate the eole about the tsunami and reduce the vulnerability during the

disasters%



Many foreign countries and international organi'ations financed for these "orkshos and

seminars% Hor e!amle, U<ESC), U<#$ and IT conducted various ro*ects among the

students in Sri Lanka% Hor e!amle, the #isaster Bisk Management - $sychosocial Care

$ro*ectG "hich "as funded by IT "as a good e!amle% The main urose of this ro*ect

"as to romote kno"ledge and skills of ersonnel emloyed in the education sector "ith

resect to disaster rearedness and school disaster safety% The ro*ect3s direct target grou

"as teachers, "ho "ere to be enabled to instruct students in disaster rearedness and ho" to

resond to emergencies% (n order to generate this kno"ledge and build methodological

cometency among teachers, the ro*ect "orked "ith 6@ national colleges of education as

"ell as 655 teachertraining centers in Sri Lanka%

Moreover, the above ro*ect also focused on establishing the first aid team in many schools in

case of emergency or disaster% (t is reorted that the above ro*ect financed the establishment

of a first aid team in more than 655 schools in many arts of Sri Lanka% The first aid team

includes five units, namely the alarm team, evacuation team, security team and searchand

rescue team% The first aid team conducts "orkshos on disaster management from time to

time in their schools and educates the children about disaster revention%

According to a school rincial in Ialle district, the first aid team conducts at least one"orksho every t"o months and educate the children ho" to rotect themselves in case of

disaster% e further added that "hen an earthDuake haens, children are asked to hide under

the table and then go to school ground "ith an emergency bag, "hich includes food, clothes

and medicines% The uroses of these "orkshos are to train the school children ho" to react

in case of disaster% Aart from the first aid teams, there are some stage dramas and street

dramas by the school children meant to educate the eole about the tsunami disaster

revention in Sri Lanka%

$. Conclusion

The overall conclusion of this research is that the Sri Lankan government has established a

good net"ork system from national level to grass root level via various deartments and

authorities% This research found that many eole lacked tsunami kno"ledge rior to the

tsunami of 855:% o"ever, after the tsunami this situation has been imroved a lot%

Begarding the media, it is noted that during the tsunami attack, the role of media "as very



limited% (n fact, the media "ere una"are of the tsunami aroaching or hitting since there

"ere no media unit resonsible for broadcasting early "arning messages% (t has been

imroved since% As ( mentioned earlier at section 4%8, several TV stations and radio channels

oened an emergency unit .8:K@/ and aointed secial broadcasting teams to inform the

eole "hen disaster + tsunami haen in Sri Lanka%

Begarding the disaster management ro*ects, it is reorted that both the Sri Lankan

government and international organi'ations introduced many disaster management ro*ects at

various levels in Sri Lanka% Hor e!amle, the school safety education ro*ect .first aid ro*ect/

is imortant for raising a"areness of disaster reduction among the school children% The school

intervie"s revealed that there are still some school children that do not understand "hat

causes a tsunami and "hat is a disaster revention system% &ased on the research andintervie"s, the follo"ing recommendations are roosed for disseminating kno"ledge and

raising ublic a"areness of tsunami disasters romote disaster education at every school

levelN conduct seminars and classes to educate the eoleN imlement some communitylevel

ublic a"areness rogramsN enhance information management systemsN and imrove

coordination mechanisms "ithin the disaster management system in Sri Lanka%

';5;';<C;!

• Asian #eveloment &ank .8557/% FAn initial assessment of the imact of the

earthDuake an tsunami of #ecember 89th, 855: on south and southeast AsiaG%

Available from htt++"""%adb%org+#ocuments+)thers+Tsunami+imactearthDuake

tsunami%df

•

Asia $acific &roadcasting Union .A&U/ Conference Beort .8557/% FThe Bole of &roadcasters on Tsunami #isaster $reventionG% Asia $acific &roadcasting Union .A&U/

in Thailand%

• &ambaradeniya, Ekanayake $erera, Bodrigo, Samara"ickrama and Asela .8557/% FA

reort on the assessment of tsunami imacts on the coastal environment in Sri LankaG%

Available from htt++"""%iucn%org+laces+srilanka+images+BU1BaidAssessment%df

• &randon, C% .8558/% FAn introduction to #isaster Communications and (nformation

SystemsG% Journal of space communication. Vol .6?/ 64464?%

http://www.adb.org/Documents/Others/Tsunami/impactearthquake-tsunami.pdf


http://www.iucn.org/places/srilanka/images/RUKRapidAssessment.pdf

http://www.iucn.org/places/srilanka/images/RUKRapidAssessment.pdf





• Chandradasa, U% .8559/% Disaster Management Policy in Sri Lanka. <e" #elhi

$ublication in (ndia%

• #eartment of Census and Statistics .8557/% FStatistics of Tsunami victims in Sri

LankaG%

Available from htt++"""%statistics%gov%lk+Tsunami+

• #isaster Management Centre .#MC/ in Sri Lanka .8568/% F#isaster $reventions in Sri

LankaG%

Available from htt++"""%dmc%gov%lk+inde!Oenglish%htm

• IT Beort .8557/%GTeaching #isaster Bisk Management in Sri Lanka3s SchoolsG%

Iesellschaft fPr Technische usammenarbeit .IT/ $ublication J Colombo%

• ayantha Banatunga .8557/% Operational Recovery after the Sumatra Earth quake an

Disaster Prevention Systems in Sri Lanka. <ational Engineering Besearch Centre in Sri

Lanka%

• aya"ardana .855?/% Restoring Livelihoo an !mproving "uality of Life of People

#ffecte $y %sunami& %he Role of a Sri Lanka 'niversity. Colombo $(M $ublication

• Leree & .8557/% FBadio Begulations in Latin America The Me!ican CaseG% Journal of

%elevision an (e) Meia. Vol .9/ 8988@7%

• Manfred #omroes .855?/% #fter the %sunami* Relief an Reha$ilitation in Sri Lanka +

Restoring %o)ars the ,uture.

Mosaic &ook $ublication%

• Massey and Larsen .8559/% FCrisis Management in Beal time o" to Successfully

$lan for and Besond to a CrisisG% Journal of Promotion Management. Vol .68/ 46:%

• Ministry of #isaster Management in Sri Lanka .8557/% FTo"ards a Safer Sri Lanka A

Boad Ma for #isaster Bisk ManagementG%

Available from htt++"""%disastermin%gov%lk+"eb+

• Ministry of #isaster Management in Sri Lanka .855@/% Fistorical #isaster

(nformation Systems in Sri LankaG%


http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Tsunami/

http://www.dmc.gov.lk/index_english.htm

http://www.disastermin.gov.lk/web/


http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Tsunami/

http://www.dmc.gov.lk/index_english.htm





• Ministry of #isaster Management in Sri Lanka .855>/% FEarly 2arning Systems and

Emergency Telecommunications in Sri LankaG%


• Ministry of #isaster Management and uman Bights in Sri Lanka .8568/% FThe role of

Sri Lankan government to"ards disaster managementG%

Available from htt++"""%disastermin%gov%lk+"eb+inde!%hQlangRen

• <ational (nstitute of Mass Communication .<(MC/ #haka J &angladesh .8568/% Role

of Meia in Disaster Risk Reuction in South #sia.#haka $ublication%

• $earce H .8557/% FTsunami3s Salt "ater may leave (slands uninhabitableG%

Electronic ournal% Available from htt++"""%ne"scientist%com+article%nsQidRdn9?:5

• $erry S .855@/% FTsunami 2arning #issemination in MauritiusG% Journal of #pplie

-ommunication Research Vol .:/ 4>>:6@%

• Samara*iva .855:/% FMobili'ing (nformation and Communications Technologies for

Effective #isaster 2arning Lessons from 855: TsunamiG% Journal of Meia an

Society.Vol .l@/%

• Sisira ayasuriya, $aul Steele and #ushni 2eerakoon .8559/% Post%sunami Recovery&

!ssues an -hallenges in Sri Lanka. Colombo University $ress

• Tsunami (nformation $ro*ect Tamil (nformation Centre .8557/% FSri Lanka Tsunami

Situation BeortG% $ublished by Tsunami (nformation $ro*ect United 1ingdom%

• U<#$ $ro*ect .8559/% F#isaster Mitigation and $revention through Bestoration of

Littoral Vegetation, Amara #istrict J Sri LankaG

Available from """%roactnet"ork%org

0Links are for osted items% (t is ossible that some items are not currently available or are

being edited%

Mohamed Shareef ASEES

Visiting Lecturer, Colombo University, Sri Lanka

&A $olitical Science, University of $eradeniya, Sri Lanka

MA (nternational Cooeration Studies, Iraduate School of (nternational #eveloment, <agoya University, aan


http://www.disastermin.gov.lk/web/index.php?lang=en

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn6840

http://www.proactnetwork.org/


http://www.disastermin.gov.lk/web/index.php?lang=en

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn6840

http://www.proactnetwork.org/



$h# .All &ut #issertation/ (nternational Cooeration Studies, Iraduate School of

(nternational #eveloment, <agoya University, aan

Shri Lanka DMA

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Transcript of Shri Lanka DMA