The Unsung Heroes of Natural Disasters…..

Zakir Hossain Miraj has been working for the Red Crescent Society since 1988. He joined as a volunteer and worked his way up. At present he is the Team Leader of the Cyclone Preparedness Volunteer (CPV) Team in Barguna. As we delve more into the topic of natural disasters, the after effects, team management and current issues that he is facing with his team, it is very difficult to ignore the pain and helplessness in his voice.

“I have seen a lot of poverty, suffering and vulnerability throughout my work”, he said.  His team work revolves around warning and evacuating people from areas that will soon be hit by a cyclone. “We disseminate early warnings from three to seven days ahead of time. But reaching out to many villages can be a challenge at times.  One of the two reasons is, either there are very bad roads, or a lack of communication channels to reach out to the villages. In some cases people just do not want to move. Their financial states and lack of awareness play a role in the latter reason. Having no savings or a place to go many just owns a small house or a cow and do not want to leave behind their few valuable possessions, holding on to them becomes a higher priority than their own safety; or they merely do not believe in the warnings”.  He continues on to say that this leads to a number of possible situations. It can become a rescue mission or a social catastrophe. In most cases, it leads to heightened levels of insecurity and further financial loss. Convincing them to seek refuge in shelters becomes a challenge at that point.

Besides the difficulties related to warning and evacuating people in a timely fashion Mr. Miraj also mentions some challenges the volunteer groups themselves face. In total there are 121 units involved in voluntary work. Every team in these units consists of young adults and adolescents; 10 men and 5 women in each team. Human resources are not an issue rather the lack of proper trainers and training equipment. “I would not know where to begin. The Red Crescent Society and the Bangladesh government are working jointly when it comes to the volunteer programs but it is so complex. At the end of it all we the volunteers are suffering the most. There are no drill practices, proper monitoring body or periodic meetings to discuss the shortage of logistics that we are facing. A group of 15 volunteers in one team with no training or equipment. Flying blind is an understatement. We just have to improvise and make the best of the situations we face, “he said. When asked about informing the authorities of the difficulties that they are facing, Mr. Miraj disappointingly replied that their voiced concerns are lost in bureaucracy. The last proper meeting that was held for volunteers was in 1996.

Mr. Miraj is one of the many volunteers who started out young and carried on with his voluntary work. The struggles they face are real and people seem to be overlooking this humanitarian deed of him and his team. Most of the people affected by natural disasters do not have much to begin with let alone after their areas are affected by cyclones, floods etc. So, open your eyes, come forth and help those who need it the most, your own people.