Community Urged to begin Preparations for Hurricane Season 2015

Island Governor Jonathan Johnson, urged the community of Saba to begin preparations for hurricane season 2015. “Making preparations at home, stocking up on the necessary items such as water and nonperishable goods, and staying informed of the weather, will ensure that you are ready should a hurricane strike the island this year,” the Island Governor said.

The island’s crisis management team met last week to take an inventory of the measures in place to so that they can respond in a timely and effective manner, should a hurricane threaten the island.

As the Head of the island’s crisis management team, the Island Governor pointed out that while this season has been predicted to be a “below average” season and preparations should still be put in place to minimize the risks of serious damage should a hurricane hit the island. He emphasized that it only takes “one” hurricane to cause significant damage to the island.

During the coming month, there will be an island-wide cleanup that will be coordinated by the island government to remove car wrecks and other large debris. This will be done to remove any debris that may become a potential hazard when a hurricane is passing. Persons that have waste to be transported to the landfill should contact Public Works to have it removed. Construction companies are also being reminded that they should limit the amount of material around their construction sites, in order to secure them rapidly.

In the meeting, members noted that the community needs to be informed about adequate hurricane preparations and what can be expected during a hurricane. This is particularly the case because there are quite a number of persons on the island that have never experienced storms and might be unaware of the risks associated with them. If a hurricane is approaching the island a curfew will be put in place and will remain in place until the storm has passed and authorities have had a chance to assess the damage to the island. The public is reminded that they should not venture out until authorities have given the green light as this will only hamper the emergency services and cleanup efforts.

Within a few weeks there will be a hurricane information campaign where brochures will be made available to the general public at various locations. Citizens are urged to make use of information as they begin to prepare for a hurricane

The governor also urged citizens “when your preparations are finished to also give a hand to those that may need assistance, in the event of disaster everyone should come together to help each other.”

Press release Saba Government Information Service.