| ON DECEMBER 26, 2004, THE WORLD sat mesmerized
by footage of the deadly tsunami that
swept across Southeast Asia. FEBC quickly
sprang into action.
We know that
in any disaster situation
radio plays a
vital role in helping
survivors find food,
water, medical assistance,
shelter, and
missing loved ones.
So FEBC engineers
packed their bags and
hurried to Asia with
whatever radio equipment
they could assemble.
Their mission was to establish a radio station
in an area where most lines of communication
had been destroyed… and they were eventually
able to offer lifesaving
information to survivors
struggling with
immense loss.
Establishing an Emergency Radio
System
The tsunami disaster in 2004 was the catalyst for
FEBC to establish emergency
radio systems for future
catastrophes. Explains one
FEBC engineer, "When we
saw the impact our broadcasts
had on tsunami survivors
in Southeast Asia, we
knew we had to be better
prepared the next time."
Soon after the team
returned from Asia, they
assembled equipment,
including a portable suitcase
studio provided by our sister
organization, Feba. Transmitters, antennas, and
wind-up radios were also collected.
The next step was arranging a trial run with
key personnel from various agencies around the
world and teaching them how to respond in an
emergency. A field test like this
would allow FEBC to gauge the time it takes to arrive at a site, establish
a station, distribute radios, and get on
the air. The goal was to set up a complete
emergency radio station within 72 hours.
Multi-Organizational Effort
The Philippines is home
to many natural disasters, so it was
the ideal location for the June 10027 trial run.
FEBC-International staff coordinated
efforts with FEBC-Philippines’
President, Dan Cura, who chose
Legaspi City for the trial run, an area
recently struck by two killer typhoons
and an erupting volcano.
Additional personnel from Feba,
World Vision, and Operation Blessing
were also on hand to provide support, along with officers from the
Philippines National Police Disaster Team.
Prior to the test, team members spent
three days in Manila, where experts taught them
disaster preparedness. Relief personnel learned
about radio, radio personnel learned about relief
efforts, and government personnel learned about both
relief and radio. Programming strategies for different
kinds of disasters were examined.
Covering a Disaster
The trial run also included on-air disaster coverage.
Because a deadly typhoon had ripped
through Legaspi City just six months earlier,
FEBC reporters interviewed disaster managers,
rescue personnel, and survivors of the storm that
killed 2,000 people. The media was also notified of the drill, and they, in turn, alerted citizens to
98.7 FM, The Voice in the Midst of Calamity.
Here listeners could learn how to prepare for a
disaster. During the three-day drill, close to 300
people responded, grateful for the information.
Lessons Learned
By all accounts, the emergency radio drill was a
success. Within 72 hours
of the test, equipment and
personnel were assembled
in the Philippines, and
broadcasters were on the
air dispensing critically
important information.
"I was confident
FEBC could pull this off,"
explained an engineer who
organized the trial run, "but there
was so much we learned in the
process. Right now we only have
one emergency radio kit, currently
stored in Asia, and we realize that
having a second one in Africa or
Europe would cut our delivery
time in half when disaster strikes
in that part of the world."
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