Director General of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), Richard Thompson, says significant emphasis must be placed on earthquake preparedness, in order to protect the economic gains in the country. Speaking at the ‘St. Bess Disaster Management Expo 2019’, hosted by the St. Elizabeth Municipal Corporation, in collaboration with ODPEM, in Black River, on August 23, Mr....

Deputy Chairman of the National Water Commission (NWC), Steven Fong-Yee, is encouraging residents seeking to acquire water, to do so through legitimate means. “Harnessing, treating and distributing water is a costly venture. I, therefore, encourage residents to apply for water through the appropriate channels and pay their bills each month,” Mr. Fong-Yee emphasized. He was speaking at the commissioning ceremony...

The National Water Commission (NWC) will be undertaking extensive pipe replacements and leak repairs in Norwood, St. James. Deputy Chairman, Steven Fong-Yee, says this forms part of the NWC’s Norwood Water Supply Improvement Project, now underway. He was addressing the commissioning ceremony for Section H of the project, on Friday (August 23). The segment was commissioned into service by National...

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie (left), interacts with Genovia Blackwood (centre) at the West Kingston Power Partners Health and Wellness Fair and Back-to-School Treat, held at the Tivoli Gardens High School on August 16. At right is Genovia’s mother, Measha Allison.

The Junior Council of the Kingston and St. Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) will be hosting an expo and back-to-school treat for the residents of the Rollington Town community in Kingston. The event, under the theme: ‘Protecting the Vulnerable: Establishing Hope through Local Government’, will take place on Thursday (August 22) at the Rollington Town Primary School from 11:00 a.m. to...

The St. James Municipal Corporation is preparing a parish disaster and evaluation plan. “We have already completed the document, so our next step will be tendering to actually have a consultant come in and assist us with (the execution),” said Disaster Preparedness Coordinator, Tamoy Sinclair. She was addressing a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank held recently at the municipality’s...

Managing Director of the Water Resources Authority (WRA), Peter Clarke, says that the volume-based fee for water abstraction has been effective. The fee was implemented in April 2018 for water abstraction across all 10 of the island's hydrologic basins. It enables abstractors to vary their licences to reflect their actual usage. This will ultimately result in the abstractor saving money,...