Tamil Nadu - Madurai   

Be prepared to face disaster: Collector

Staff Reporter

National Disaster Reduction Day observed at school; fire service personnel demonstrate rescue techniques

MADURAI: At a time when disasters have become a common affair, it is pertinent to be prepared to face them either by taking precautions for self-protection or by adopting certain methods to escape from the impact, said Collector D. Raajendiran.

Presiding over a function to observe National Disaster Reduction Day at St. Joseph's Girls Higher Secondary School on Saturday, he wanted the public to be aware that once nature was tampered with and its equilibrium disturbed, the consequences would be severe.

People should restrain themselves from using chemicals that caused depletion of the ozone layer. The threat of global warming was looming large due to ozone depletion, resulting in melting of snow from mountains and an increase in sea level, Mr. Raajendiran said.

Know preventive methods

The impact of a disaster could be minimised once people gain knowledge of preventive methods. Public should also be aware of steps to prevent a mishap from becoming a disaster, said Mr. Raajendiran.

Unlike animals, human beings were in a position not only to protect themselves but also fellow humans, said K. Vadivel, Personal Assistant (General) to the Collector.

Explaining various techniques to tackle fire accidents, Divisional Fire Officer V. Ramachandran said the department had been conducting mock drills to create an awareness among the public.

Chief Educational Officer K. Sridevi said such mock drills were organised to create awareness of how to act when disaster struck. Initially, people would get panicky, but there was no need for getting scared once they were aware of precautions to be taken at the time of disaster. She also appealed to all the participating heads of institutions to take the message to their students.

Around 200 representatives and heads of educational institutions apart from students participated.

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