All the residents of Seumbu Village who witnessed the enormity of the earthquake accompanied by landslides on 2 July 2013 never forget about that dark memory. All village residents had to evacuate quite far from their residential areas. The previous residential area was deemed no longer safe to live in, forcing them to relocate. Trapped by problems of access to livelihoods in the form of gardens and agricultural land, caused residents of Seimbang to move twice after the earthquake occurred.
The severe impact experienced by Se Spice Village was due to the earthquake disaster 2013 is one of our reasons for carrying out a disaster risk reduction program in this region. That morning, Monday 17/07/2023 We returned to Seimbang Village to continue the series of programs "Develop Community Led on Disaster Risk Management”. This program is an initiation of the Indonesian Scale Foundation which is supported by PT. Mandala Multifinance Tbk.
From a distance, Thick fog could be seen covering the Seimbang Village area from a distance. Drizzle made patterns on the windshield of the car we were riding in along the road to the village. The cold and foggy weather did not deter residents from discussing the disaster with us.
The enthusiasm of the residents of Seimbang Village who came to the village head's office became a warming ember to ward off the cold wind blowing from all corners of this room.. The activity began with a greeting from Reje or the Head of Seimbang Village, then continued with ice breaking forum stiffness breaker.
The implementation of the program this time focuses on creating earthquake contingency plans. On the first day, We present various materials regarding the basic concepts of disasters, the history of earthquakes in the Central Aceh region to the threat of earthquake disasters in this region. This is done to make it easier for the public to understand the process of making contingency plans that will be carried out the next day.
Next day, on Tuesday 18/07/2023 We are continuing the process of making contingency plans. We started to convey what a contingency plan is, aims and objectives to the principles of its creation. After that, we held discussions to create disaster scenarios and assumptions about the impacts that would occur. Armed with memories regarding the experience of facing the earthquake disaster that year 2013 being a catalyst raises understanding regarding the importance of making contingency plans and estimating the conditions and impacts of an earthquake disaster if the event recurs in the future.
The next process is no less interesting, because residents were divided into several groups to map human resources and equipment that could be utilized during the emergency response. The exchange of voices between groups seemed to liven up the room which had not been used optimally as the village head's office for a long time. All stages went well even though there were several obstacles.
We used the results of the resource mapping that had been carried out together to form the structure of the command post for emergency response to the earthquake disaster in Se Spice Village. All participants began to voice their opinions to fill this structure. Various small debates colored the discussion which became more and more heated over time.
On the last day, Wednesday, 19/07/2023 is the day when all participants jointly agree on the structure of the emergency response command post and then create a work flow and agree on the main tasks and functions of each existing structure.
After everyone understands their respective duties when a disaster occurs, So we continued the next process to carry out table top exercises or training on the table regarding activating the emergency response command post. The process begins when news of the earthquake disaster scenario is read out. All participants learn how to carry out their duties when an emergency response occurs, starting from getting incident information, form a rapid assessment team and carry out data collection on affected conditions or assessment and then activate the command post.
Experience dealing with earthquake disasters in 2 July 2013 made the residents of Seimbang Village have a sharp memory regarding the disaster that occurred. This memory seems to be the key to a door to deciding on mitigation actions. Through memories of previous disaster events, makes it easier for people to reflect on themselves and imagine potential disasters and the impacts they will experience. (LS)
