BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - MEMBERS of the St. Kitts and Nevis national emergency response units were put to the test on Friday (Oct. 19) when they were asked to respond to a major earthquake followed by a tsunami warning, as part of a simulation exercise.
This exercise came after a two-day workshop that was held as a means of reviewing and enhancing the current National Disaster Plan (NDP).
Over 40 members of the various emergency response divisions, including National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force, St. Kitts and Nevis Defence Force, St. Kitts and Nevis Fire and Rescue Service, Emergency Medical Services, Red Cross, Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, attended the workshop.
National Disaster Coordinator Carl Herbert provided details of the workshop, stating that apart from the NDP, the event also addressed the roles and responsibilities of the emergency units.
"It was an Emergency Operation Centre orientation workshop which was also in preparation for the simulation exercise that was held on Friday. The workshop was to address roles and responsibilities of the various entities and the role of the Emergency Operation Centre in addressing a hazard or disaster situation. The objective was to train people in how the Emergency Operation Centre functions and their individual roles as well as their responsibilities.
Herbert said that the exercise, which was planned by Retired Superintendant of Police Ivor Blake, targeted a primary school and its evacuation response to an earthquake, as well as the response of the emergency units with regards to the quake as well as a tsunami threat.
"The scenario was the impact of an earthquake where there was also the threat of a tsunami. The Irish Town Primary School was used to test their capabilities to evacuate because of their proximity to the coastline.
"There is a school safety programme, and recognising that that particular school is one of several that is close to the shore, it was used to test the ability of the school to evacuate quickly. The majority of the exercise was based at the NEMA office and the Nevis Disaster Management Department. The exercise was done simultaneously in St. Kitts and Nevis on Friday. It started at 9:00 a.m. to midday with an evaluation after that," Herbert explained.
The National Disaster Coordinator went on to explain the importance of not only the workshop, but also the coming together of all emergency response units with regards to reviewing the National Disaster Plan.
"It is very important because it is not just the NEMA staff. The plan speaks to multi-agency and multi-sector involvement, so there was a need for us to come together to practise, to review and to identify gaps and areas that were omitted from the current plan. We have had several entities that have come onboard to help make changes and we want to ensure that the plan speaks to the more current situations that exist."
When asked about follow-up workshops and exercises, Herbert said there are definitely plans in the making for those, although he could not state when they would take place.
"We have not set any specific dates as yet, but it is our intention to have more workshops and simulation exercises. We don't know what the next scenario would be, but there is the school safety programme that we look at. Safety in relation to natural hazard and other hazards so we would work closely with the Ministry of Education to assist them in the enhancement of the school safety programme."
Herbert explained that the Emergency Operation Centre is a facility that comprises a multi-agency representation and multi-sector representation to address hazards or impacts.
