Students of Excelsior High School view one of the exhibits on display in The Gallery at Fort Charles, Port Royal yesterday. The occasion was the Jamaica National Heritage Trust's Earthquake Awareness Expo marking the 313th anniversary of the 1692 earthquake which destroyed most of Port Royal. - IAN ALLEN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
RESIDENTS OF Port Royal said yesterday that they were not prepared for a major disaster.
They note that in the event of a major earthquake, many of the houses in the town would not be able to withstand the impact.
"I don't think we are prepared. The buildings where people live want a lot of repairs and I don't think that they can take a major earthquake," Lavern Thompson, a teacher at the Port Royal Basic School told The Gleaner.
Her comments surprisingly, if not, eerily coincide with the 313th anniversary of the 1692 earthquake that sank parts of Port Royal, once described as the 'richest and wickedest' place in the world.
Ms. Thompson said that many of the houses in the community had numerous cracks in structures that were not sound.
BUILDINGS NEED REFURBISHING
Sergeant Norman McGibbon, sub-officer in charge of the Port Royal Police Station, made the same assessment.
"The few dwellings that I have been to are in a poor state. I don't believe that they would be ready for an earthquake," he said.
"Most of the roofs are cracked. There are some really good sturdy houses up by the beach. Those new buildings could stand the test. But some of the older buildings need to be refurbished in order for them to stand any form of disaster."
He noted, however, that the police had an evacuation plan in place in the event of a major disaster.
"We work with the disaster preparedness committee and whatsoever instruction we receive from them, that is the instruction we work off," he said.
To mark the anniversary of the June 7, 1692 earthquake, the Jamaica National Heritage Trust (JNHT) yesterday staged an earthquake awareness expo at Fort Charles in Port Royal.
Susanne Lyon, executive director of the JNHT, said the expo was intended to increase awareness.
"The object of earthquake awareness is to reduce death and suffering due to earthquake advocacy, preparedness, preven-tion and mitigation," she explained.
Children, she noted, were the main target audience of the expo.
D.R.
