Sept / Oct 2016 | Business View Caribbean

20 September 2016 - Business View Caribbean Business View Caribbean - September 2016 21 Opening Lines Training Exercise Held for CARICOM’s Primary Disaster Relief Unit Thirty-two participants from the disciplined forces, including police, military and fire services, success- fully completed four days of training in preparation for their role in providing relief and humanitarian as- sistance in the event of a disaster. The annual train- ing workshop of the CARICOM Disaster Relief Unit (CDRU) was held at the Caribbean Disaster Emer- gency Management Agency’s (CDEMA) headquar- ters in Barbados from August 8 to 12, 2016. The training was facilitated by CDEMA in collabora- tion with the Regional Security System Headquar- ters (RSS HQ) with funding from the US government through the US Southern Command. The CDRU is one of the specialized teams trained by CDEMA each year as part of the Regional Response Mech- anism (RRM).The RRM is coordinated by CDEMA to provide humanitarian and technical support in a timely manner if requested by any of the CDEMA’s 18 participating states. The system is extremely dependent on the readi- ness and willingness of the governments of partici- pating states, regional institutions, key development partners, agencies of the United Nations, and hu- manitarian partners to work together in offering im- mediate assistance when the call comes from the CDEMA Coordinating Unit. From 1992 -2015, the Regional Response Mecha- nism has been in action 17 times and in several in- stances to multiple islands at the same time. The response has been to disasters resulting from vol- canic eruptions, earthquakes, and weather related events. In his feature address at the closing ceremony, Ron- ald Jackson, Executive Director of CDEMA said, “I am very proud of what we have accomplished to- gether, not just this week but over the past 25 years of CDERA’s/CDEMA’s existence. Whilst many were talking about civil/military cooperation and coordi- nation, the CARICOM Community under the lead- ership of CDEMA and in partnership with the RSS and the region’s military, security, and fire chiefs were actually actively doing it. The significance of the RRM and the CDRU should not be understated. There is real capacity in the region to assist our par- ticipating states,” he added. The CDRU comprises military, fire, and police assets drawn from the 18 CDEMA participating states. The Unit is deployed to provide humanitarian assistance in direct support to the civil authorities of any state affected by natural or technological hazards. The CD- RU’s mission is to conduct disaster response and relief operations and its main tasks include the man- agement of relief supplies, emergency telecommu- nications, and the provision of appropriate person- nel for repairing critical lifeline facilities. The four-day training included introductions to di- saster management, national disaster management and the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC), introductions to the Regional Supply Track- ing System (RSTS), incident command system, urban search and rescue in CDEMA participating states, dignity and human rights, and civil/military coordination. The training concluded with a field training exercise that allowed the Unit to perform their specific roles in a hazard impact scenario with bases established at the airport and sea port. The field exercise setting allowed for the various phases of operations to be tested – from alert to deactivation. The CDRU is activated, mobilized, and deployed by the Regional Security System’s Central Liaison Of- fice (RSS/CLO) in consultation with and on behalf of CDEMA. Its operations are guided by the CDRU operational plan, standing operating procedures and a memorandum of understanding between CDEMA and the RSS.