Lessons Learned from the Bangkok Earthquake on March 28, 2025: Response Guidelines for Aviation, Travel, and Service Sectors in Emergency Situations

Abstract

This qualitative research article adopts an existential-phenomenological approach to   the lived experiences of aviation personnel, travel personnel, and service personnel during    the Bangkok earthquake on March 28, 2025. It pursues the following objectives: 1) to examine the situation and extract lessons learned from the experiences of those affected by the earthquake and 2) to propose response guidelines for managing earthquake situations that may occur in Thailand. The research tools included: 1) in-depth interviews with 33 purposively selected key informants, 2) documentary research, 3) experiential learning, 4) lesson-learned, and 5) content analysis. The study integrates empirical findings with theoretical concepts to develop new knowledge.

          The research found that Thailand remains unfamiliar and inadequately prepared in terms of experience, knowledge, and understanding for effective earthquake response. There is a critical need to enhance both theoretical understanding and practical capacities across multiple dimensions: 1) disaster response in three phases, 2) context-specific preparedness, 3) appropriate behavior during seismic events, 4) personal safety practices, and 5) scenario-based response strategies. This is especially critical in aviation and travel sectors that provide safety-oriented services, to enable proper, effective, confident, and safe responses to potential future earthquakes.