Friday, May 18
– In promoting disaster awareness and preparedness in the
Territory, the Department of Disaster Management (DDM) has produced a new and
improved Community Disaster Preparedness
Guide.
The new Guide contains practical information on preparing and recovery
from the effects of disaster events which may affect the Territory. It includes
hazard-specific safety tips and information on personal, family, business and
community preparedness and protection.
Upon
receiving the first copy, Governor Boyd McCleary said “I am impressed by the
quality and content of this book. It contains topics that are extremely
relevant to all of us in the Virgin Islands.”
He
added, “The presentation of this Guide
is timely, as we are about to enter into the hurricane season. This Guide
covers a wide variety of topics and is a wonderful tool for individuals,
businesses and communities. I am
confident that by following the information provided in this guide it will make
us all safer, stronger and better prepared to respond to any emergency
situation.”
The Community Disaster Preparedness Guide is a revision
of the 2005 Community Disaster Preparedness Handbook with updated information,
pictures and with more colour. This latest production includes both English and
Spanish sections.
DDM’s
Information and Education Manager Linton Leonard said, “I am quite
pleased with the direction this guide has taken, as it has successfully
covered one of the priority areas of the Public Information and Education
Subcommittee in developing material to reach the Spanish-speaking community. It
contains a wide variety of preparedness information that is now available to a
wider spectrum in the Territory. Now more people can be more aware and better
prepared”
The
production of the Community Disaster Preparedness Guide was done by SYSTAR, a
local consultation firm, and was funded by AusAID, CIDA, UKAid and OECS through
the administration of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency
(CDEMA).
A limited
amount of the Community Disaster Preparedness Guide is available to the public;
however, both languages are available for downloading at www.bviddm.com in the publication section of
the Document Center on DDM’s website.
