“I feel afraid,” 14-year-old Amal Ibrahim said after the practice. “But when I think of the steps I should do, I feel less frightened because I know how to protect myself.”
Students’ relatives are invited to learn about the drills – not least because otherwise they might risk their own lives by coming to school to try to save their children in a disaster, said Kassem Chaalan, an LRC project manager.
“In studies we did, a number of the deaths and injuries were either caused by attempts to escape or to rescue others,” said Chaalan.
The school training is also seen an opportunity to increase disaster resilience within wider communities. “You can create this culture among children at schools, and then they will be able to transfer this culture to their families,” said Chaalan.
The school training includes information on how to recognise a disaster, where to shelter, when and where to evacuate, as well as the basics of first aid and firefighting.
“When we used to hear (the) sound of bullets, we used to be too scared to know what to do. It was so confusing,” said Houssam Khaddooj, an 18-year-old former student who now volunteers with the LRC on the drills.
“If this had happened before, the area would have coped better. We would have been able to take care of ourselves, to raise awareness among those who are younger than us.”