The Tribune

THE Bahamas, through the National Emergency Management Agency, will join other locations in the Caribbean as a participant in a tsunami response exercise today.

The purpose of this exercise is to evaluate national protocol, local tsunami response plans, increase tsunami preparedness and improve coordination throughout the region.

“Based on the number of tornadoes we have been experiencing in the Bahamas over the past years and the instant intensification of Hurricane Joaquin in 2015, (this has) reminded us of the urgent need to be more prepared for such events,” said Director of NEMA Captain Stephen Russell. “This also shows the importance of testing our procedures and protocols for alerting the population throughout the entire archipelago simultaneously and in a timely manner.”

The exercise, titled CARIBE WAVE 16, will simulate a widespread tsunami warning and watch situation throughout the Caribbean, which requires implementation of local tsunami response plans. The exercise will include public notification.

The exercise will simulate a major earthquake and tsunami generated just off the Caribbean coast of Northern Hispaniola at 11am today.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) is the interim regional tsunami service provider for the other countries in the Caribbean Sea and Adjacent Regions.

The National Disaster Committee, which comprised the 13 Emergency Support Function groupings of NEMA, is involved in the exercise and the public will be notified through various mechanisms.

The exercise is sponsored by the UNESCO/IOC Intergovernmental Coordination Group for Tsunami and Other Coastal Hazards Warning System for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions (ICG/CARIBE-EWS), the Caribbean Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), the Centro de Coordinación para la Prevención de los Desastres Naturales en América Central (CEPREDENAC), the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and by the US Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Programme (NTHMP – a partnership of 29 states and territories and three federal agencies).