EDITORIAL: Don’t be caught off guard

Every year, Barbadians are encouraged to prepare for the hurricane season, which generally lasts from June 1 to November 30. During this hurricane season, Barbados as well as other Caribbean countries have experienced doses of constant, heavy rainfall at some point with at least 40-mile per hour wind gusts.

Despite the usual reminders from the Department of Emergency Management, some persons are still caught off guard when flooding occurs in many of the accustomed areas. It appears that some property owners around the island are unable, and in some cases, unwilling to make enough of an effort to have their properties hurricane ready or even give their homes the proper maintenance that is required to prevent gradual disrepair. People spend hundreds of thousands when they build and develop their properties, but the case might exist that they do not have the resources to do the necessary preventative maintenance, or other day-to-day needs are put ahead of maintaining these properties. This maintenance, however, would go a long way in securing their investment should a hurricane or other disaster occur.

A few years ago, an official of an emergency management agency advised that people should ‘think of their safety and design a safe area in their homes, such as a downstairs room, a walk-in closet, or a middle room’; and she also suggested they could ‘prepare shutters for this area if they could not afford shutters for the entire house’. She urged people to ensure that their home insurance policies were paid and up-to-date, and to secure important documents in a safe place. This official, however, stressed the point that a hurricane shelter should only serve as a last resort, especially if her advice was followed.

At this time too, we should check our back-up equipment, such as spotlights and batteries in case of power failure; and non-perishable goods stored, so that the lines in the supermarkets and shops across the island are not jammed with people when a hurricane watch is issued. This year in particular, The Barbados Advocate urges readers and indeed all citizens to plan early and plan responsibly for this hurricane season, which has already seen two major hurricanes cause major destruction across the Caribbean. Do not wait until the last minute to buy the necessities for your household. However, there are certain basic preparations that need to be made early. Parents especially should have enough food, medicine and supplies to cover their children and themselves. Support should also be offered to those who are vulnerable – the elderly, the disabled and those who cannot fend for themselves – throughout the season and generally keep a neighbourly eye out for them.

During this season too, Barbadians need to be more co-operative, since the traffic slows when the rain falls and because of the flooding in some areas, traffic jams are unavoidable. Flooding has been a feature recently with the heavy rains that have affected this country and our citizens have dealt with these events admirably. It is therefore incumbent upon each citizen to continue to ensure that his/her surroundings are properly maintained, especially at this time.