On Thursday, 25th August, members drawn from the civil service in Anguilla met at the Zion Methodist Church, in North Hill, with representatives of the Anguilla Red Cross (ARC), to conduct a drill on the distribution of relief items to those in need in the aftermath of a disaster. The team of civil servants represented the Government’s Department of Disaster Management (DDM).
Commissioner of the Department of Social Development, Ms. Lauraine Gumbs, headed the Government’s team. She spoke to The Anguillian newspaper concerning the exercise: “This is our first relief drill of the year. As we are in the hurricane season, we are making preparations in the event that we are struck.”
“However, a hurricane is not the only disaster that can affect us,” she said. “Any natural disaster can occur. But, today, we want to put in place the things that we have learnt from Hurricane Irma, in its aftermath, as far as distributing relief items are concerned.
“I am the relief coordinator and I lead a team of nine volunteers. Together, we all will manage the relief distribution aspect of the disaster. We are supported by stakeholder departments such as the Anguilla Red Cross, Anguilla Fire and Rescue Services, and the Royal Anguilla Police Force.”
“The church here at North Hill is one of our shelters and relief distribution points,” she said. “This is a mock exercise where we have set up a registration desk, so that affected persons, who require relief items can come and ‘register’. We have engaged some members of the community who will come at a certain point to claim their relief items.”
Programmes Manager of the Red Cross, Mr. Trevor Queeley, said that he was delighted to be part of the preparation for any potential disaster, and that the Red Cross remains ready to do its part in working with the Department of Disaster Management in the event of a local crisis.
