Thai govt to launch SMS-based disaster alerts soon: DES minister
The new warning system will notifying residents of upcoming natural disasters such as storms, floods and landslides
The government will start using SMS services to send out natural disaster warnings soon, Digital Economy and Society Minister Prasert Chanthararuangthong said on Tuesday.
Prasert, who also doubles as deputy PM, said this decision was made at a meeting of government agencies in charge of disaster warning and prevention on Monday.
Attending the meeting were representatives from the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, the Office of National Water Resources, the Meteorological Department, mobile phone operators, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), and the Public Relations Department.
The agencies agreed that the warning would be sent in the name of the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, while the content will be provided by agencies in charge of monitoring weather conditions and different types of imminent disasters.
For instance, if heavy rain is expected, the warning will come from the Meteorological Department and if it is mudslides, then from the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry.
Prasert said when a disaster is forecast, such as runoffs that have recently inundated Chiang Rai, the information will be sent to the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department for devising a warning SMS message, which will be passed on to the NBTC.
The NBTC will then forward the SMS message to mobile phone operators to disseminate to the public.
SMS warnings will be issued at five levels, depending on the severity of the situation. Prasert said they would also advise the recipients on what they should do to protect themselves.
At the meeting, the mobile phone operators were asked to expand their channels of communication with their customers to better disseminate disaster warnings, he said.
The government’s Public Relations Department has also been asked to announce disaster warnings on television.
Prasert added that the SMS warning system was now ready to cope with both storms and floods expected to hit the country soon.
Separately, the cell broadcast service initiated by the NBTC will be ready by the second quarter of next year. Once this service is ready, warnings will be broadcast to all mobile phones in disaster areas without requiring phone numbers, he added.
