EVACUATION OF PUERTO RICOS DISASTER STRICKEN AREAS

The government of Puerto Rico through the act of parliament No. 22 of June 23, 1976 amended this section of the constitution known as “Puerto Rico Civil Defense Act” created the commonwealth of Puerto Rico Emergency Management and Disaster Administration Agency, attached to Puerto Rico Public Safety and Protection commission; grant special powers to the Governor in emergency disaster situations (Jiang et el) Natural disasters like Earthquakes, hurricanes, Tsunamis, Tornadoes, fire and floods always leaves behind a severe damage that requires billions of dollars for corrective mechanism annually, it claims lives and massive displacement of people. It interrupts economic activities of a country and completely affects the major sources of revenue for the affected countries. Over the years many countries have been affected just to mention, Haiti, Mexico, Australia some parts of the African continent and the Asian minor and major.

Unfortunately, most instances finds people unaware hence, creating that atmosphere of confusion. The evacuation plan will be channeled in three levels; Incident Controller, Regional Controller and the State Response Controller. Emergency Relief Centre(s) through the Initial Impact Assessment process and Local Council of San Juan will be notified by the Area of Operations Controller as soon as the unit identifying damages avail their findings. This is to ensure processes are well implemented which in turn shall provide initial relief for affected persons, in the form of grants, food, shelter among others. availing this information will enhance the smooth transition to recovery activities within affected communities. Municipal Councils will activate the Emergency Recovery Centres as required in the relevant Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMP).

The provision of this public information will be disseminated through a range of media. This should be a key focus for the Information and Communication Technology Department (ICTD) to ensure the public is aware of the present situation and any perceived threats. The ICTD shall; establish the Public Information Unit including information and warnings officer, as soon as possible in order to ensure that proactive community engagement occurs in a timely manner, providing relevant information and advice for community members to make active decisions about their personal situations. Information provided by the Public Information cell can also then be disseminated via media outlets to ensure that all relevant safety and health messages are conveyed as widely as possible. Also, ongoing timely advice and updated information will be Provided by the Public Information Service Unit, ensuring that the community can be prepared and assist in their own preparation.

Always look after the children, identify some of the best routes out of the neibourhood, where to avoid during the disaster. On the account of the disaster. Plan escape routes from your homes and neighborhood. Sometimes the major roads could be blocked or completely destroyed in large scale disasters, at least have an alternative route. Program the Puerto Rico emergency line into your cell phones and land line telephones for efficient communication incase of the disaster. Puerto Rico will coordinate its own agency resources at the Regional level from Incident Control Centre and work directly with key support agencies such as the Juan Roads, SANPOL, Utility Companies and Local Government Authorities (LGA) among other response team that will be diploid for resource requirements and deployments.

The coordination of Puerto Rico Central Region resources will be managed by the Central Region Duty Officer. The Area of Operations Controller will be responsible for: · Information collection, analysis, and dissemination of intelligence to emergency service organizations; · Co-ordination of the provision of resources required by Units and Central Region via the Region Duty Officer; Allocation of resources; · Requesting of additional resources; · Maintain briefings to the State Control Centre on current and predicted operations; · Incident Action Plan and Situation Report development; · Safety of Incident Personnel during earthquake response Local Governments have responsibility for management of municipal resources and the co-ordination of community support to counter the effects of the emergency during the response to and recovery from earthquakes which may affect their Local Government Authority.