St. Mary Disaster Committee Focuses on Earthquake Awareness

The St. Mary Disaster Committee is staging a number of activities to observe Earthquake Awareness Month (January).
In an interview with JIS News, Myrnel Grant, Co-ordinator for the St. Mary Disaster Committee said the events planned are intended to increase the public awareness about earthquakes, as well as to heighten their preparedness to mitigate the effects of such disasters.
The events include a display of reading material on earthquakes; earthquake drills and talks; and the identification of earthquake hazards. These will be held in public buildings, schools, libraries and business places across the parish for the purpose of sensitising as many residents as possible about the procedures to be followed during an earthquake.
She explained that the Committee had designated the month of January for special focus on earthquake awareness, but the activities might also extend to February if it was not possible to complete them in January.
Mrs. Grant said that a great deal of knowledge could be gained from the public displays, the earthquake drills and the talks, adding that the hazards identification exercises were also extremely important as they were aimed at removing objects, which could fall and endanger lives during an earthquake.