Assessment Of Critical Infrastructures: December 2004 Tsunami In The Southern Region Of Thailand

The tsunami that stroke six southern coastal provinces of Thailand on 26 December 2004, has increased concern over an infrastructure system. This event caused extensive damage to human lives and properties which include many infrastructures that have vital services and facilities for citizens as a whole.

This tsunami had possible effect and impact on: (1) physical components of infrastructure systems; (2) potential loss of service; (3) the safety of humans and; (4) the security of sensitive systems in the natural and built environments (Wallace, et al., 2003). Many aspects of tsunami impact were studied by many experts in various fields. Infrastructure is one of important aspect that is needed to study because disruptions of infrastructures have a serious impact to people as a whole in both during an emergency period and a long term development.

Disruption in an infrastructure is said to occur when one or more of the physical components or one or more of the activities needed to operate a physical component cannot function at prescribed levels (Wallace, et al., 2003).

The word “Critical infrastructure” was said a long time before this tsunami event. This word was more concerned in The September 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. The threat at that time, which was terrorism, was not natural phenomenal disaster like this time. Critical infrastructures identification provides information to prioritize which infrastructure is more crucial to protect from a treat. Criticality assessments were applied for critical infrastructure identification in this research study. Criticality assessments provide information to prioritize assets and determine which potential targets merit further evaluation. Criticality assessments provide a basis for focusing the mitigation strategies and implementation methods on the most important items by identifying which assets and structures are more crucial to protect from a treat (United States Coast Guard, 2002).

Tourist industry of Phuket and Phang–Nga Provinces were serious depressed by tsunami. Especially, Phuket Province is very famous tourist place of Thailand for both domestic tourist and international tourist. Revenue of tourist industry is a major income for these two provinces. Tourism infrastructure is the physical element that is created or made to cater for visitors (Davidson, 1993). The emergency plan and evacuation plan is thus needed to study in order to reduce the potential loss of human lifes. The host community has the onus of preparing for disasters not only for their own protection, but also for the safety of tourists (Drabek, 1994).

There is a relationship between tourism infrastructure and tourist industry because without recovery of tourism infrastructure, recovery of tourist industry cannot be accomplished. Although tsunami is unpredicted event, preparation to minimize losing human life and property is still important. Planning for tsunami helps people do better next time. To accomplish critical infrastructure protection, disaster management is needed to study in order to reduce potential loss of infrastructure services and human lives.

Mr. Bunpot Luttakoon made a study which main objective is to assess critical infrastructures during the December 2004 tsunami in the southern region of Thailand. Three specific objectives of his research study were to : (1) develop a framework to identify critical infrastructures in the event of December 2004 Tsunami in the southern region of Thailand; (2) assess the changes in the hotel management and tourist industry that was related to the emergency plan, evacuation plan, strategy, and policy after the event of December 2004 Tsunami in the southern region of Thailand; and (3) formulate strategy and policy recommendations for critical infrastructure protection to reduce potential loss of human lives and infrastructure services.

Conclusions

The tsunami event on 26 December 2004, was striking in the southern region of Thailand, has been being concerned for infrastructure systems. Tsunami is a widespread natural phenomenon disaster. Disruption of infrastructures was a serious problem for both during an emergency period and a long term development. During the recent tsunami event, many infrastructures were disrupted. It caused a serious impact on the national defense, economic security, public safety and public health. In addition, infrastructure interdependence also increased an impact between them.

The major findings in the first phase of research study are: (1) Phang–Nga Navy Base of Royal Thai Navy Force is the most critical infrastructure based on national defense criterion; (2) Hotels and accommodations are the most critical infrastructure based on economic security criterion; (3) Hospital is the most critical infrastructure based on public health and public safety criterion and; (4) no infrastructure was serious impact based on critical infrastructure interdependence criterion.

It was found that some infrastructure is critical infrastructure in other extreme event but it was not critical infrastructure for tsunami event because their infrastructures do not have a risk that is impacted by tsunami event. It can be concluded that risk is one factor that should be considered to identify critical infrastructure for tsunami event. The researcher suggested that critical infrastructure for specific location and specific event are different because at lease, level of complexity of infrastructure and type of threat in different country are different. Critical infrastructures were identified in the first phase.

In the second phase, hotels and accommodations was selected for further study. All selected hotels, located in the risk area of tsunami, were impacted by the tsunami in both direct and indirect impact.

It was found that all studied hotels and accommodations in the impacted area do not have emergency plan and evacuation plan for tsunami before the tsunami event on December 2004. The hotels have only emergency plan, evacuation plan, and training program for fire emergency that is enforced by government regulation otherwise the hotels cannot continue their hotel license for tourist business. The emergency procedure for fire was trained every year for employees. The report paper of training has to submit to government agency every year for continuing of hotel license.

Emergency plan for tsunami was very much concerned by every hotel in affected area after the tsunami of December 2004. But it seems to be declining by a time it was passed. It was found that major pressure to implement tsunami emergency plan is human life concern and community–based activity while depressed tourism industry situation is the minor pressure to implement this plan.

The royal Thai government was a center of tsunami emergency plan and evacuation plan for a whole community, including every hotels and accommodations. Hotels and accommodation representatives were selected for this training program. After that, the representatives of each hotel and accommodation had to implement emergency plan and evacuation plan for each own hotel. The successful levels of this implementation for each hotel are different. It is up to the capability of each hotel and level of attention.

The emergency plan and evacuation plan were not government regulation but all hotels and accommodations have a good concern by them because this implementation also effected to the trust from both customers and employees. For overall impacted area or community, it has a training program and tsunami warning systems test every month. This training was held very frequent in the first year after the tsunami event especially when tsunami warning system was installed but it seems to be less in the second year as reported by many executives.

Post–tsunami development offers the opportunity to correct the mistakes of the past. Activation of emergency plans is based upon assessment of the potential impacts of disaster. Skill in emergency preparedness and planning is to be distinguished from skill in the emergency management. The core of emergency management has to do with inter–organizational relationships (Drabek, 2002).

Existing policy and strategy were acted by both individual hotel and cooperation of many organizations. It was found that the best policy for recover tourism industry is confidence creation. Many ways of promotions were acted by the government agency and related organization for confidence creation and confirm that all area was recovered back to the normal situation. Tsunami warning system installation was also a purpose for confidence creation. The completion of disaster management, including preparedness, detection, response and recovery, would not have been accomplished without the support by collaboration of Hotels, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Tourism Guide Company, Government Agency, Airlines, the Thai Hotels Association and the Association of Thai Travel Agents.

Researcher suggested that almost critical infrastructure protection previously started was concentrated on human disaster such as terrorism, human error, and dangerous chemical. It is very less that critical infrastructure is concerned on natural phenomenal disaster especially tsunami because preparedness for disaster is up to the frequency or recurrence of disaster event. The main policy of this research study was applied from disaster management. The key of disaster management can be applied for every disaster. These are preparedness, detection, response, and recovery. In addition, three important words should be added. These are resilience, robust and redundant of critical infrastructure.

Critical infrastructure protection requires a consistent, cooperative partnership between the owners and operators of critical infrastructure and government agencies. Owners and operators of critical infrastructure would provide adequate security of their assets by actively implementing their emergency plans, evacuation plan, and exercises. The government should enforce emergency plan and evacuation plan for tsunami as legislation for hotels and accommodations for tourist industry security. This legislation should cover minimum standards for infrastructure design. Even the best security management plans and legislation which compel to their enforcement are worthless without proper implementation. Experience proves that independent Commission security inspections of their implementation are the only efficient instrument to guarantee the correct implementation of security requirements.

Communication breakdowns often hamper the effective coordination of a disaster response. Tsunami in the south of Thailand 2004 creates the need for cooperation within and among responding organizations. Many government agencies involved with Tsunami response operations. However, if all organizations hope to achieve full cooperation during a response, many inconsistencies in the management of information within and between organizations will have to be eliminated. The functional responsibilities of every relief organizations are different, and understanding how to translate differing capabilities and concerns into a unified inter–organizational interaction is a major priority.

The response during the relief period after the tsunami event has to include the following issues. These are human life rescue, food, water, sanitation facilities, temporary shelter, and clothing. The recovery period includes many development programs, reconstruction of facilities, education recovery, economic recovery, and etc.

In order to achieve a sustainable development, basic infrastructure should be provided and recovered after the tsunami event. The provision of food is a crucial for survival needs of affected families and to help sustain recovering communities. Government has to provide shelter options for tsunami affected communities, including safe and appropriate public buildings. Schools or education facilities should be reconstructed for students and teachers. The government should focus on increasing appropriate health care services in tsunami–affected communities. Ambulances, hospital beds, major medical equipment, and pharmaceuticals should be provided for victims. Victim could access to clean water, toilet and laundry facilities, pavements, wells, water towers, drainage systems, rainwater harvesters, public bathrooms, boreholes, and etc.

His thesis abstract is copied and posted.

ABSTRACT

During December 2004 Tsunami in the Southern Region of Thailand, many infrastructures were disrupted by seismic sea waves. This research study developed a framework to assess critical infrastructures during the December 2004 Tsunami in the southern region of Thailand. Specific locations of this study were Phuket and Phang–Nga Provinces. Four criteria were developed to identify critical infrastructures that were disrupted in the study areas. These criteria were national defense, economic security, public health and public safety, and infrastructure interdependence. The questionnaire and interview were conducted among experts who were responsible for these infrastructures during the emergency and recovery period. It was found that: (1) Phang–Nga Navy Base of Royal Thai Navy Force is the most critical infrastructure based on national defense criterion; (2) Hotels and accommodations are the most critical infrastructure based on economic security criterion; (3) Hospital is the most critical infrastructure based on public health and public safety criterion and; (4) no infrastructure was serious impact based on critical infrastructure interdependence criterion.

Hotels and accommodations were selected for a further study. This study aimed to assess the changes in the hotel management and tourist industry that was related to the emergency plan, evacuation plan, policy, and strategy after the event of December 2004 Tsunami in the southern region of Thailand. The questionnaire was developed for a telephone interview of fifteen hotels in Phuket Province and five hotels in Phang–Nga Province. It was found that the government agencies were a center of tsunami emergency plan, evacuation plan and training exercises for a whole community, including the hotels and accommodations. These hotels and accommodations have been implementing tsunami emergency plan and evacuation plan after the Tsunami event. The stimulated factors to implement these plans were human life concern, community–based activity and depression of tourism situation.

Finally, strategy and policy recommendations were formulated in order to reduce potential loss of human life and infrastructure services. These policy and strategy were applied by the key of disaster management. These are preparedness, detection, response, and recovery. In addition, resilience, robust, and redundant of infrastructure were included for critical infrastructure protection.