From the Daily Herald T&T

PHILIPSBURG–The National Disaster Management Organisation on the island, through the Office of Disaster Management (ODM) in Cay Hill which is located at the Fire Department, will be participating in a regional exercise called Caribe Wave Lantex 16 on Thursday. The purpose of the exercise is to assist tsunami preparedness efforts in the Caribbean and adjacent regions, including the United States (US)/Canadian East coast.

  Caribe Wave Lantex 16 is a Caribbean tsunami warning exercise. ODM will focus on information exchange and cooperation with St. Martin along with the physical evacuation of the lower parts of a beachfront resort. Dummy warning messages will be issued to test communications with tsunami warning focal points and emergency management organisations within the region.

 The exercise scenario will focus on a powerful earthquake just north of Venezuela that will trigger a tsunami throughout the Caribbean region. The effects on St. Maarten/St. Martin will be a tsunami with a height of minimum three metres, as well as a second earthquake off the coast of the Dominican Republic an hour later. This means all beachfront properties will be affected under the exercise scenario.

Part of the exercise includes the organisation of an evacuation of the lower levels of a beachfront hotel – Simpson Bay Resort and Marina – which is participating in the exercise. The Resort has responded with great enthusiasm and is fully cooperating with the exercise. ODM takes this opportunity to thank the Resort’s management for their participation.

 The Intergovernmental Coordination Group for Tsunami and Other Coastal Hazards Warning System for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions ICG/CARIBE EWS of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the US National Tsunami Hazard mitigation Program are the entities involved in carrying out the tsunami exercise Thursday. The island is a member of the ICG/CARIBE EWS. 

  The tsunami warning exercise is being conducted to assist tsunami preparedness efforts throughout the Caribbean region. Recent tsunamis such as those in the Indian Ocean (2004), Samoa (2009), Haiti and Chile (2010), and Japan (2011) attest to the importance of proper planning for tsunami response.

 Historical tsunami records from sources such as the NOAA National Geophysical Data Centre show that more than 75 tsunamis with high validity have been observed in the Caribbean over the past 500 years. These represent approximately seven to 10 per cent of the world’s oceanic tsunamis. Earthquake, landslide and volcanic tsunami sources all have impacted the region. Almost 3,500 people have lost their lives to tsunamis in the Caribbean since 1843.

For more on this story go to: https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/56133-disaster-management-organisation-in-caribe-wave-tsunami-exercise-thurs