Two decades on, has Thailand forgotten lessons of 2004 tsunami?

With regular evacuation drills and safety-awareness classes, a headmistress in Phuket now believes all 58 children in her school would survive if another tsunami hit their coastal community.

“All our students know what to do and what not to do when a tsunami alert is issued,” said Chariyaporn Sangcharoon, principal of Koh Ma Prao School in Phuket’s Mueang district.

Appointed in early 2024, Chariyaporn joined the Project on Partnerships for Strengthening School Preparedness for Tsunamis in the Asia-Pacific Region, determined to ensure every student knows how to protect themselves. She underwent special training that enabled her to draw up an emergency response plan for her school.

The project, supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and mainly sponsored by the Japanese government, was launched in Thailand in 2017 in collaboration with the Office of the Basic Education Commission (Obec), the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, and the Thai Red Cross Society. It now covers 224 state schools in tsunami-prone areas, including Koh Ma Prao.

Phuket was among six Andaman provinces hit by waves up to 14 metres high on December 26, 2004. Triggered by an earthquake off Sumatra, the Boxing Day tsunami killed around 5,400 people in Thailand alone, with thousands more injured and many listed as missing in its aftermath. Roughly 228,000 lives were lost across 14 countries in the deadliest tsunami ever recorded.

"Under the response plan, our students are taught to stay calm in emergencies and follow safety guidelines. When an alarm sounds, they follow their teachers who will lead them to safety,” Chariyaporn said. “Each member of the school has been assigned a clear role.”

She explained that training and evacuation drills were necessary to ensure that the children don’t panic and run towards the beach during an emergency.

“The evacuation drills are conducted regularly so that the students are always alert. And thanks to proper training, they can also help others around them,” Chariyaporn said.

Located on a small island that’s home to around 180 Muslim families, the school teaches students from Anuban 2 to Pathom 6 (Kindergarten 2 to Primary 6). Most residents earn their living from fishing, while others work in nearby hotels.

The project gives parents confidence that their children will be guided to safety by their teachers, meaning they do not need to rush to school if another natural disaster hits. A chaotic stampede during an emergency usually hampers evacuation efforts and raises the risk of casualties.

Always prepared

Schools participating in the project are provided with a step-by-step manual on risk assessment, mapping, and evacuation, as well as drill implementation and first-aid response, as per Thailand’s National Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Plan (2021-2027) and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030).

“More than 12,000 people have joined our project, with inclusive evacuation plans that cover all groups of students, including those with disabilities,” UNDP Thailand’s deputy resident representative Irian Goryunova said recently.

Chariyaporn said the project teaches participants how to prepare for different scenarios. For instance, schools with disabled students and foreign teachers/pupils need a different set of steps to ensure nobody is left behind.

Still not enough?

Though schools under the project are confident of its effectiveness, tsunami survivor Maitree Jongkraijug says the preparations are not enough to avert disaster if another gigantic wave erupts from the sea. Maitree, former chair of a tsunami victim network, currently manages the Chumchonthai (Thai Community) Foundation.

“The drills are held just once a year,” he said. “Other safety measures have not been upgraded since they were first installed.”

The 2004 tsunami was a devastating wake-up call for Thailand, exposing gaps in knowledge and disaster preparedness that led to massive loss of life. Communities were also unprepared for the havoc the waves left behind.

In response, the country introduced an early-warning system, including tsunami-warning towers, signposted evacuation routes and evacuation training.

“When disaster strikes, flaws in our defences can be seen clearly,” Maitree said, adding that Thailand is still focused on reacting to disasters instead of preparing for and preventing them.

Another flaw, he said, is that the power to declare an emergency still lies with provincial governors instead of with local authorities who are in closer contact with what’s happening on the ground.

“Local bodies can’t do much because they lack the budget and the power for disaster prevention and preparedness,” said Maitree, who lost more than 40 relatives in the 2004 tsunami.

He added that despite great leaps in technology over the past two decades, Thailand’s disaster defences are still lagging.

In a bid to remedy these flaws, he has compiled a list of proposals for political parties standing in the February 8 general election.

“We want politicians to pay more attention to disaster management,” he said.

His proposals include establishing a fund to subsidise local authorities’ disaster defences. Municipalities would be allocated 500,000 baht each to boost their skills and knowledge and arrange evacuation centres for residents rather than relying on makeshift measures like earthen embankments.

“We need to ensure local communities are properly prepared to deal with disasters, so they can protect themselves instead of waiting for external help,” he said.

What the govt says

The National Disaster Warning Centre insists that the early alert system meets all requirements put in place after the 2004 disaster. The centre is tasked with receiving and analysing data from relevant agencies in Thailand and overseas, and issuing public warnings when necessary.

The warnings are issued via the Thai Disaster Alert app, SMS messages and popular social-media platforms including Line, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.

“Relevant officials will also receive alerts and instructions from local administrative bodies and local leaders like kamnan and village heads,” the centre explained.

All six provinces hit by the 2004 tsunami – Ranong, Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, Trang and Satun – are popular tourist destinations, so warnings there will also be issued in multiple languages.