Taiwan boosts community safety with new disaster prevention guide

Taiwan's Ministry of the Interior is enhancing its community safety network by distributing a new guide focused on disaster preparedness for apartment buildings. Following the release of the "Little Orange Book" last year, which bolstered national defense mobilization capabilities, the ministry is now rolling out 100,000 copies of the "Apartment Building Disaster Reduction and Prevention Guide," dubbed the "Big Orange Book."

This new guide is intended for apartment building management committees and other relevant bodies. Its distribution aims to encourage and support communities in forming their own independent disaster prevention teams. Deputy Minister of the Interior Wu Tang-an stated that the ministry is currently reviewing the guide and hopes residents will actively participate in disaster prevention training.

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The Ministry of the Interior is currently proofreading the 'Big Orange Book'. Once completed and confirmed, it can be provided for everyone's reference. The Ministry will also promote this manual during disaster prevention training.

The ministry has been actively promoting a disaster prevention training program since 2018. This initiative has expanded to include various groups such as conscripts, police officers, security personnel, apartment building committees, taxi drivers, community leaders, and even foreign workers and religious groups. As of now, over 163,507 individuals have been trained as disaster prevention personnel nationwide, with a target of reaching 200,000 by the end of the year.

Regarding the "Big Orange Book," Wu Tang-an confirmed that the ministry is in the final stages of proofreading. Once completed, the guide will be made available for reference and will be promoted alongside the disaster prevention training sessions. The ministry encourages residents to engage with the training, emphasizing that familiarity with their living environment, public facilities, emergency shelters, and parking areas are all integral parts of disaster preparedness.

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The Ministry of the Interior hopes that residents will participate and that it will be promoted to members of every district's management committee so they can participate and receive training. Familiarity with their home environment, public facilities, emergency shelters, and parking spaces are all part of disaster prevention training.