They Didn’t Know Where To Flee
More than two weeks have passed since a tsunami hit the shores of Banten and Lampung, killing 431 and forcing more than 40,000 to flee their homes. The wake of the yearend disaster has left a grim portrait of disaster mitigation.
Bainah, 35, had no idea where she should go when the tsunami hit the Carita coast on the evening of Dec. 22, 2018 in Pandeglang regency, Banten province. In a panic, Bainah fled with her husband and three children.
The family of five fled with others into an alley 200 meters from their home in Citajur hamlet, Sukarame village, Carita district. Some screamed, “The water is rising, the water is rising.” An evacuation route sign stood at the end of the alley.
However, Bainah, much like everyone else around her that night, ignored the sign. She simply ran as far as possible from the beach. Some 800 meters from the alley, Bainah and her family arrived at an empty field. That was where they spent that night, along with dozens of other local residents.
Bainah did not know that she had to follow the evacuation route sign during a disaster. “There has never been any disaster training. We only knew that we have to run to the hills if a tsunami or a high wave strikes,” she said.
Just 100 meters down the alley is a warning sign that informs people to get away from the beach. However, no other warning signs were found along the alley, which narrows and branches.
Local residents say that the alley leads to the Curug Putri waterfall in Banten Forest Park (Tahura). Curug Putri is 2 kilometers from the village and is accessible by either foot or motorcycle. However, Bainah and her family decided to seek refuge in the empty field in Cibenda hamlet, Sukarame village, which was once a rice paddy.
Unclear signs referring to the evacuation route were also found in Sambolo hamlet of Sukarame village. The white signs, bearing the words “Follow the Safe Route in Case of Tsunami”, were installed by the Banten national unity and politics agency (Bakesbangpol). The signs direct people to Curug Putri waterfall.
No other signs were found down the 2-meter-wide alley. About 400 meters down the alley is a “Meeting Point” sign that stands in front of the At Taqwa mosque in Susukan hamlet, Sukarame village.
However, residents living near the mosque also ran to higher ground when the tsunami hit. For instance, 40-year-old Arkasih of Susukan hamlet ran to the eastern hills. Further ahead, the alley narrows to just 1 meter and turns into an unpaved path of clay and gravel. From here, it heads to Curug Putri, some 1.5 kilometers away.
No evacuation drill
The local people who fled to Curug Putri did not see any signs showing the evacuation route, and were simply running to reach higher ground. “No disaster evacuation training or drill has ever been held,” said Arkasih.
In Sukarame village’s Legon hamlet, a roadside evacuation sign has toppled over behind a gate, hidden from the view of passersby. “It fell over six years ago. It was never fixed,” said Legon local Wawan, 44.
Wawan said the sign was never maintained. He also said that no tsunami evacuation training or emergency drill had been held. Wawan and his neighbors only learned of safe places to go in a tsunami during a visit to the Banten Forest Park office.
The office is located in Sukarame village, around 1 kilometer from the coastline and 95 meters above sea level. Visitors and tourists would find it difficult to reach the office because of the lack of signs.
Forest Park development and utilization staff Supriadi said he was shocked to find so many people who had taken refuge in the office. Another 1,700 residents took refuge at an observation post of state forestry company Perum Perhutani. “I had no idea that the office was on the tsunami evacuation route,” said Supriadi.
He added that he had never received any information on a tsunami evacuation route.
Confusion
The people of Waimuli Induk village in South Lampung regency, Lampung, were also confused about where they should go when the tsunami struck. The existing evacuation route leads to a location that has no shelter.
When the tsunami hit, Noni, 35, ran to her mother’s house, which actually stood on lower ground than her own house. “I was only thinking that I had to run to my mother’s house. We had no idea where else to go,” she said.
Local governments had installed signs to help residents find refuge during disasters, like in Waimuli Induk village, Rajabasa district, South Lampung. However, the signs do not direct them to locations with proper and adequate shelters that offer protection from tsunamis.
Izul, 32, said that not many people passed through the alley that was part of the designated evacuation route.
South Lampung Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) head I Ketut Sukerta said that the evacuation signs directed people to head uphill. “[The residents can] head uphill to escape tsunamis,” he said.
Pandeglang Regent Irna Narulita said that her administration would improve local evacuation routes in the regency. “We will set up evacuation routes and emergency stairs to aid people during disasters, including in hotels,” she said.
The lack of proper shelters, easily accessible evacuation routes and emergency drills highlight the government’s neglect of localized disaster mitigation efforts. Awareness on the importance of disaster preparedness and mitigation arises only after the fact, after a major disaster has already taken many lives. (PDS/BKY/BAY)