CATEGORY:DISASTER PREPAREDNESS --------------------------------- INSIDE GRENADA SATURDAY May 19,2007 by Rawle Titus ST. GEORGE’S: Roughly two weeks before the official start of the new Hurricane season, Disaster Officials are taking no chances in their efforts to ensure that shelters would be well coordinated in the event of a Hurricane. The National Disaster Management Agency (NaDMA) has completed another training exercise in the art of managing a hurricane shelter. This time, about 30 Imani interns completed the crash course at the NaDMA head office at For Frederick in Morne Jaloux ”I learnt a little about Shelter Management, how to separate the people, the children the sick. In a shelter you can’t say there is no room. you always have to find room to secure people” said Samantha Hagley one of the participants. For Kassandra Joseph, it was a welcomed opportunity to educate herself”Its giving me a better idea how to go about dealing with people and situations in the shelter. This is why I am taking the training to educate my self more on dealing with people and situations”. The one day exercise covered various topics under the subject such as the various types of hazards, the characteristics of the hazards as well as the operations of a shelter. The decision by NaDMA to place a higher priority on shelter training came in the wake of Hurricane Ivan in which there were widespread complaints of unruly behaviour and vandalism. Trainee Rosan Griffith said:” I am learning a lot about shelter management, how to conduct yourself in the shelter. How to assist. What are the requirements? How people should behave”. …we might encounter some problems with people not wanting to comply with the rules and that is not required” she said. The Imani workers have already benefited from several other courses in Disaster Management. Qualified Disaster Management trainer Natasha Sutherland said the workshops are making a big difference. “In the event that some of them are asked to volunteer, they should know what is expected of them as a staff member of a shelter as well as what is expected of the shelterees" She said. “They have been very open and responsive to the information.”