Thailand and the Republic of Korea co-hosted 

the ASEAN Regional Forum Disaster Relief Exercise 2013 (ARF DiREx 2013)

Thailand and the Republic of Korea co-hosted the 3rd ASEAN Regional Forum Disaster Relief Exercise (ARF DiREx 2013) from 7 - 11 May 2013 in Cha-am, Phetchaburi Province, Thailand. ARF DiREx 2013 brought together over 1,800 civilian and military participants from ARF Members including the ten ASEAN Member States, the ten ASEAN Dialogue Partners (Australia, Canada, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia, the United States and the European Union) and other countries in Asia-Pacific (Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Timor-Leste). Other key participating partners included the ASEAN Secretariat, ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance and disaster management (AHA Centre), United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), World Health Organization, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC). Observers included the Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre and Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (TCS).

Building upon the success of the 2 precious ARF DiREx in 2009 (Philippines) and 2011 (Indonesia), the ARF DiREx 2013 aimed to enhance civilian-military coordination, strengthen cooperation in disaster relief as well as promote exchanges of expertise and best practices in disaster management among ARF participants. Based on an overarching scenario of 8.9 Richter earthquake in Sumatra and a subsequent tsunami hitting the Andaman coast of Thailand, the Exercise comprised 3 main components, namely Table Top Exercise (TTX), Field Training Exercise (FTX), and After Action Review (AAR). In the TTX, participants shared their ideas and experiences on the operationalisation of existing national, regional, and international frameworks and coordination mechanisms on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) They also discussed the stages and procedures for coordination on international assistance mobilisation including assets and logistics.

The Field Training Exercise (FTX) was held at Rama VI Camp, Naraesuan Camp, Jalaprathan Cement Public Company United and on Cha-am beach, Phetchaburi Province. The FTX focused on 7 scenarios: the Emergency Operation Center (EOC), rock-slide, collapse of structure, maritime rescue, medical relief, chemical leakage, and air rescue operation.

The TTX and FTX concluded successfully with cooperation from all ARF participants in ensuring the success of the exercises together with the support of all relevant supporting agencies, the UN and international organizations. An important component of ARF DiREx 2013 was the After Action Review (AAR), a valuable part of which focused on overall assessment of lessons learnt as well as making the necessary recommendations to the ARF Senior Officials and ARF Ministerial Meeting subsequently.

The ARF DiREx 2013 reflects Thailand’s commitment and active role in disaster management and serves as a platform for networking amongst the ARF Members and their participants. It also provided the participants to share their expertise and best practices among ARF members and the relevant national, regional and international agencies.

http://www.arfdirex2013.org