Bhubaneswar: Mock drills were conducted at the shelter level across various districts of Odisha on Monday. Organised by Odisha Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA), these community-led drills aimed to enhance preparedness, strengthen community response capabilities, and reduce the impact of disasters.
Community members, shelter management committee members, task force volunteers, village disaster management committees, PRI members, Mission Shakti/WSHG members, NGO partners, Anganwadi workers, ASHA workers, and youth participated in the mock drills. Conducted annually, in the multi-purpose cyclone shelters/ multi-purpose flood shelters, these drills help simulate realistic scenarios of cyclones and floods and streamline community response, an official release said.
As part of the exercise, a dummy message was sent from the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) to the district Collectors and the District EOCs disseminated it to various field-level officials and others associated with the management and maintenance of multi-purpose cyclone/flood shelters.
Simulated drills were conducted as per SOP/village-level Disaster Management Plans prepared by the communities. Furthermore, teams of ODRAF, NDRF, and Fire Services participated to demonstrate search and rescue and first aid techniques.
By simulating the challenges and complexities associated with such disasters, the drills provided an opportunity for stakeholders to evaluate their emergency response plans, revisit coordination mechanisms, and identify areas for further improvement.
The mock drill process included warning dissemination, evacuation, search and rescue, and first aid activities. Equipment available at the shelter level was tested thoroughly to check its functionality.
State-level observers from OSDMA and the office of SRC, along with district and block-level officers visited the districts to observe the mock drills at the shelter level.
