Haldwani: There was a stir in different areas of Nainital district on Monday morning. Vehicles of police administration, district administration along with SDRF, NDRF and fire brigade were seen running at various places. People could not understand why vehicles of police and district administration were running on the roads early in the morning? But after some time it was known that the district administration is conducting mock drill in view of the disaster.
The Disaster Management Department conducted a mock drill in Haldwani and Lal Kuan of Nainital district to test the preparations in view of the monsoon session. Under the mock drill, information was received that a flood-like situation has arisen in Devkhadi Nala, due to which a flood-like situation has arisen and many people have been injured.
As soon as the information was received, the District Disaster Control Room Nainital and Tehsil level IRS (Incident Response System) team became active. District Magistrate and District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) Chairperson Vandana monitored the situation from the Disaster Operations Center and directed to conduct relief and rescue operations in a timely and effective manner.
A staging area was prepared at Haldwani Tehsil Office and teams from various departments were dispatched to the site of the incident. During the mock drill, 6 injured were safely evacuated from the drain area. Out of which 4 were given first aid on the spot. While 2 seriously injured persons were taken to Sushila Tiwari Hospital through 108 ambulance.
The work of removing debris from the flood affected area was also done with the help of JCB machine, so that relief could be provided by clearing the way. There was zero loss of life in the mock drill. The entire relief and rescue operations were monitored by the Disaster Management Department and the coordination between all the departments was successfully tested.
Administration’s preparation is satisfactory: District Magistrate Vandana instructed all the officers to remain in alert mode, describing the experiences gained through the mock drill as useful in the strategy to deal with upcoming possible disasters. He said that in any actual disaster situation, quick response and immediate availability of resources is essential to save lives.
