Emergency tsunami, fire drill held in Phuket

PHUKET: An earthquake and fire drill was organized in Phuket this morning.

“At 10am, we simulated an 8.9 richter earthquake in Sumatra, Indonesia, which is 1,097 kilometers away from Phuket. We then waited for a tsunami warning from the National Disaster Warning Center,” said Phuket Vice Governor Sanith Sriwihok.

All relevant officers were instructed to warn locals and be ready to evacuate the area. The evacuation times were 11:48am for Karon, 11:55am for Patong and 12:02pm for Nai Yang.

At 10:30am, the center lifted the warning and everything went back to the normal.

During the drill, officers also simulated a pick-up truck accident causing a fire and injuring five people at the Darasamuth Underpass.

— Kongleaphy Keam