If another Tsunami comes... A Life Raft

2005-08-16T01:27:00.000-07:00

We Maldivians were people who saw natural disasters only through media and films. Most believed that we would not be faced by such natural disasters. But all that changed with the December 26 tsunami which left us with tears and fear. We knew that like other countries of the world, even ours was vulnerable to natural catastrophes. But the sad thing is that we have not learned from that tragedy. We are not even prepared for another such disaster. There are no plans on how to even save our lives in such a case. We are not even doing anything for preparation.

If we do not take action now, Maldives may be a place wiped off from the earth’s surface. Maldives will be recorded only in some obscure document. I pray to Allah Almighty that we are protected from such a horrific fate.

Other countries of the world which suffered natural disasters once are always prepared for the next disaster.

We should think for the future of our country more than other people do for theirs. This has to be so because our country is very vulnerable and because our lives are at stake. We eat healthy food and are clean because we want a good life. Similarly we must do something to be prepared for natural disasters. This is something for which we do not have another alternative if we want a future. Likewise I will try in this article, to tell you a way to protect our lives from such a disaster.

I think that very soon a tsunami warning system is going to be installed in this region of Asia. Apart from that, if there is any sign of an upcoming danger, the international media would report it to the world within seconds. Therefore there has to be a way to save our lives in case of a tsunami warning. Finding spots in our environment which would be least affected by a tsunami is important. Surprisingly, we found on the day of the tsunami that nothing on the surface of the deep seas was affected. When this was researched, it came to be known that the level of rise of the waters in those areas was very little. It was found that when the tsunami comes to areas where the waters are shallow, the level of rise of the waves are higher. This shows us that in case of a tsunami, the open sea is more safe for us than these small low lying islands which we live on. Making things like life rafts then would seem a good idea.

While making such life rafts, climate and weather factors should be taken into account so that people would be safe and would survive for the longest time on the sea. Necessary items such as water and medicine should be made available. Lifejackets and a radio system for communication are important. The life raft can act as a tsunami buoy.

The number of such life rafts to be made would depend upon the population of each island. I believe that harboring such rafts near highly populated islands and tourist resorts would provide security for many islanders as well as tourists.

I agree that such a project would be costly. Bringing islanders aboard rafts in moment’s notice would create lots of difficulties. But still this has to be done for the safety of our lives. If this is left only as some theory about which no one cares about, then we might have to face dire consequences in the future. Therefore we must find experts in this field to do a project assessment research for this as soon as possible. This idea has to be implemented as a reality in the closest future. We know that hay can be made only while the sun shines and not when a rain storm comes.