Learning our lesson

As of Tuesday, November 10, 2015

EDITOR, The Tribune

In the past several months, we have heard much about “teachable moments”. We have been having these moments for years, but what concerns me is that we do not seem to have learned many lessons from them, particularly with reference to hurricanes.

We do not seem to have learned that we are an archipelagic nation which lies within the hurricane belt and the hurricane season runs from June to November each year. If we had learned these lessons, we would have known after devastating hurricanes like David, Andrew, Francis and Jeanne, among others, that radar covering 150 miles cannot cover an archipelago which stretches for hundreds of miles. We would have known that electricity and telephone services would be lost and it would be necessary to equip the commissioners on the Family Islands with working satellite phones, with an operational generator and properly repaired hurricane shelters.

We would also know that NEMA needs to carry out training in the islands on a continuous basis so that islanders would be able to better protect themselves when a hurricane hits. A most important lesson we should have learned is that when we visit a devastated island, water and food can be more useful than a plane load of politicos and a photographer.

JEANNE THOMPSON

Nassau,

October 25, 2015.