Ultra-Realistic Disaster Drills in Tainan Enhance Water Tourism Safety

Tainan City is bolstering safety measures for its popular water tourism attractions through comprehensive training for boat operators. The city's Tourism and Information Bureau has partnered with companies operating sightseeing boats and tourist rafts to conduct crucial safety education.

This initiative involves six participating businesses and utilizes simulated scenarios to sharpen the emergency response capabilities of frontline personnel. Mayor Huang Wei-che emphasized Tainan's rich water tourism offerings, including the Sicao Green Tunnel, Tainan Canal, and several reservoirs, which attract numerous visitors annually. He stated the training aims to enhance risk prevention awareness and refine immediate response skills during emergencies, ensuring a safe and enjoyable experience for all travelers.

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Through this educational training, we continue to strengthen the risk prevention awareness of frontline operators and improve their immediate response and correct handling capabilities when disasters occur, jointly safeguarding tourist safety.

The training sessions, held at the Sicao Taijiang Pier and Hutoupi Reservoir, covered practical skills such as CPR and AED operation. Participants engaged in realistic drills for scenarios like passengers falling overboard, boat fires, and patient evacuation and reporting procedures. The city government also conducts quarterly inspections to ensure operators adhere to safety standards, including vessel checks, life-saving equipment, staff training, and emergency protocols.

The Tourism and Information Bureau advises passengers to choose licensed vessels, follow crew instructions, and adhere to safety regulations. Visitors are cautioned against standing, playing, or crossing safety boundaries while the boat is in motion. For water activities, the public should check weather conditions, be aware of tides and environmental changes, and assess personal capabilities before entering potentially dangerous or restricted waters.

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The courses included CPR and AED practical exercises, simulated drills for passengers accidentally falling into the water, boat fires, and patient evacuation and reporting procedures, as well as practical courses on life-saving equipment operation and passenger safety management.