Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the monsoon season, the State Government on Monday conducted mock drills at the shelter level across various districts of Odisha.
These community-led drills aimed to enhance preparedness, strengthen community response capabilities, and reduce the impact of disasters.
State-level observers from the office of Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Satyabrata Sahu and Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA) along with District and block-level officers visited the districts to monitor the mock drills at the shelter level.
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 and Multi-purpose Flood Shelters, these drills help simulate realistic scenarios of cyclones and floods and streamline community response, an official said.
As part of the exercise, a dummy message was sent from the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) to the 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 were tested thoroughly to check their functionality.