Nepal local bodies train residents for disaster situations

In Nepal’s Dhangadhi city, a twenty-year-old woman, Faheen Salmani is being hailed as a saviour after she saved the lives of her parents and locals in a fire accident caused by cylinder gas-leakage in her house. The knowledge and training she was passed on by her mother helped douse the fire and save lives.

Faheen’s mother, Nazma, had undergone the training about controlling kitchen fires, which was undertaken at Dhangadhi Sub-Metropolitan City’s coordination under the Strengthening Urban Preparedness, Earthquake Preparedness, and Response in the Western Region of Nepal (SUPER) project. But when the incident occurred, she fretted, but Faheen came forward, executing the knowledge provided by her mother, which saved the community.

The SUPER project was launched in August of 2021 in Dhangadi, Nepalgunj Sub-Metropolitan city, Amargadhi and Jay Prithivi Municipality in coordination at local levels. It is being funded by the European Union with UNDP, UNICEF and UN Women working as consortium members. The local body now has hundreds of trained personnel for disaster risk management. Coming from different age groups, the locals are ready to be mobilised at the time of a disaster.