CDERA signs agreement with Government of Austria on Regional Earthquake Readiness
By CDERA
Thu, 23 Aug 2007, 15:30
Bridgetown, Barbados, August 23, 2007 (CDERA) - The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency signed an agreement today, with the Government of Austria to support earthquake readiness programmes in at risk CDERA Participating States. The focus of the programme at the national and regional levels will be on earthquake preparedness planning, improving contingency plans, and promoting a region wide earthquake awareness campaign.
Speaking at the Signing Ceremony at the CDERA Coordinating Unit in Manor Lodge, St Michael Ambassador Marianne DaCosta said that “following the European Union Latin American Summit in May last year, the Government of Austria has tried to shape the rising interest in the Region and to have more of a presence in the Caribbean”.
“We know that this funding of €350,000 (US$500,000) is not enough but it is a start”.
She expects the project to deliver concrete tools that can be effectively used and not to be just about paper work. In alluding to the recent earthquake in Peru, she noted how quickly things can change and disasters can happen and the importance especially for the small island states of the Caribbean to have adequate response and coordination plans in place.
In delivering his remarks, Jeremy Collymore, Coordinator of CDERA said, “The Regional Earthquake Readiness Capacity Building Programme is born out of recognition that our earthquake preparedness system is not where it must be. This is not to say that things have not been happening. Mass casualty plans are being refined; Search and Rescue capability and emergency communication are being strengthened.”
“This programme,” he said, “will advance prior initiatives started by our Partners by providing model tools for the harvesting and framing of mechanisms for institutionalization.”
One of the major outcomes expected is the Earthquake Awareness Kit for Children which is seen as the beginnings of the building of a culture of awareness for disaster loss reduction in future generations.
Collymore also drew attention to the signing of the Agreement during the 100 year anniversary of the 1907 earthquake in Jamaica and in the active period of the Hurricane Season as a conscious reminder of the vulnerability of the region to other hazards that threaten our development.
Earthquakes are a major threat to the Caribbean community and our vulnerability is evidenced by the frequency of felt events across the Caribbean. The Leeward Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica are all prone to earthquakes. The recent event in Dominica in 2004 is a reminder of how this hazard can derail development.
The Earthquake Readiness Capacity Building Project is a two year project and is expected to start in 2007.
Ambassador Marianne DaCosta and the CDERA Coordinator paid a courtesy call earlier today on the Chairman of the CDERA Council, the Honorable Dale Marshall, Attorney General and Minister of Home Affairs.
For Further Information, Please Contact:
The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency
Building #1 Manor Lodge
Lodge Hill, St. Michael
Barbados
Telephone: (246) 425-0386
Fax. no. (246)-425-8854
E-mail: cdera@caribsurf.com
Website: www.cdera.org