41 airlines in Phuket assure safety
Phuket International Airport joins force with 41 airlines to assure all of aviation safety, despite earthquake aftershocks in the resort island.
Airport Director Pratuang Sornkham and representatives of the airlines operating at the airport today joined a press conference. Together, they unveiled the readiness to handle unexpected situation to derive from earthquakes and tsunami.
Pratuang said that the airport is capable of evacuating all passengers to safe places in light of earthquakes or tsunami, or promptly sending them back to their countries of origin.
"On April 11, on notice of possible tsunami following the 8.9 Richter earthquake in Indonesia, we promptly shut down the airport and airlines evacuated about 1,500 passengers to the airport's kitchen area. This is in line with our drill. No passenger reported injuries or loss of valuable things. Everything went as planned," he said.
However, he admitted that much is to be done with the kitchen area, which is open and has no chair or light. Measures are drawn to tackle the issues, including the communications system. The tsunami drill is being revised.
Pratuang said that after April 11, the airport witnessed a 3.14 per cent increase in flights, showing that many airlines are assured of the safety measures.
