The mock fire and disaster management drills post the Carlton Towers tragedy in Bengaluru seems to have brought in some sense of awareness about natural disasters among its citizens. Most of the IT majors and BPO companies evacuated the occupants soon after the tremors were reported in parts of city on Wednesday. In many offices, the alarms were sounded and announcements made on each floor through public address systems to evacuate the building.
As advised during the drills, most of the occupants in many buildings used the stairs instead of lifts though there were reports of people using lifts in some buildings on M.G. Road. Though no incidents of stampede or commotion were reported, some panicky people rushed out of buildings with their laptops and bags. According to the disaster management experts, the city showed that it is aware of how to react when a disaster like an earthquake hits. Mr V.S. Prakash, Director, Karnataka State Natural Disaster Management Cell, said that nowadays, several IT companies and private offices conduct periodic evacuation drills for their employees.
“Several drills on fire and flood safety have been conducted and briefed to office-goers in Bengaluru. Disaster management has also been included as a special chapter for schoolchildren,” Mr Prakash added. But disaster management experts also felt that Bengalureans are not aware about do’s and don’ts when an earthquake hits. There are no mock drills conducted to prepare for eventualities in case of an earthquake. “We are not in an earthquake-prone area. What we felt on Wednesday was a ripple effect of an earthquake that hit somewhere else.
In the coming days, we are planning to introduce some drills based on disasters like earthquakes. But people in Bengaluru and other cities living in high-rises have some basic awareness about reacting to disasters,” Mr Prakash added. In the coming days the District Disaster Management Cells will also hold training workshops for teachers and students in the district headquarters to generate awareness about the response to natural disasters such as earthquakes.