The FIRST Response disaster radio field trial team members have been talking to the local people in Nagapattinam to see who’s been listening to their broadcasts.
They are distributing small radios and a leaflet with information about the FM station. As the team visit with people, they have heard some heart-wrenching stories from the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami disaster and all share the hope that disaster response preparation will help save lives in the future.
“Four years after the Boxing Day Tsunami, why are you asking me questions now?,” a tsunami survivor tells Maggie Yrasuegi, Programme Supervisor for FEBC and member of the FIRST Response team. She says portions of Nagapattinam still bear the scars left by the tsunami but life has been slowly getting back to normal and the rebuilding has come a long way.
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Maggie continues: “The FIRST Response teams who went to get interviews around the communities have come to realize that indeed now is the time to have a FIRST Response radio trial in disaster prone areas like India. As the survivors recounted their harrowing experiences, they openly said that they could have done better if the information they needed were given at the right time. There has been nothing like the FIRST Response disaster radio trial anywhere in India. It has the locals excited by the fact that they are breaking new ground, and they are being part of a positive change happening in their community.” Mr. Hemant Babu of Nomad, who acquired the license for the radio trial, told Maggie that at first he did not think this project was worth his while but as things have unfolded, he is grateful for the chance to be a part of “an historic event.”
Story of Mr Parameswaran
Mr Parameswaran, the local man hosting the FIRST Response team for this disaster radio field trial, suffered much personal loss during the 2004 Tsunami. He was living on the New Beach Road of Nagapattinam. He went to the beach with all of his three children and seven of his relatives. Being struck by the terrible tidal waves, Mr Parameswaran was carried away for a long distance by the forceful water and escaped by holding on to a tree. His children and relatives were swept away by the waves. Today, he and his wife operate the ministry called Nambikkai (Hands of Hope) to help people to get out of their trauma, and they dedicated their house for the orphan children. Now 16 children are staying at their home, with Nambikkai looking after them for their food, clothes and school needs. For the full story, see: www.nambikkai.org.in