ODPEM on standby for tropical storm threat

 

The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) says its systems have been placed on standby to ensure quick response to the effects of Tropical Storm Melissa. 

 

Director General of ODPEM, Richard Thompson, says particular attention is being paid to communities and areas prone to flooding.

 

"At the ODPEM, we continue to run over scenarios based on the projected part of the system, looking at our at-risk population, looking at our at-risk communities and the kind of response operation that has to go in to ensure that we are protecting those persons. Within the planning elements, we are looking at aspect of evacuation, providing transportation, our general response protocols; looking at from the discussion with the Met Office, we will be making a decision with the administration, my minister as well in terms of when we'll look at going to full activation of the National Emergency Operation Centre," he advised.

 

Mr. Thompson said with constant rains over the last few weeks, there are concerns about the amount of rain that the storm will dump on the island.

 

"What we are looking at in terms of the scenarios that we are running is flooding, urban flooding, coastal flooding, landslides, rock slides. We are at almost complete ground saturation, given that we have been having rainfall activities for the past four to six weeks. So that is another area of concern as well that we are at total saturation, so we are looking at high possibility of flooding in a lot of troubled communities across the country. We continue to map those communities to have a good appreciation as to what we will see in terms of the impact of the [storm]," he disclosed.