Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
MARIGOT--The annual hurricane preparedness meeting took place in Hotel de La Collectivité Friday morning with all the relevant persons and departments to assess the readiness of the territory in the event of a hurricane strike.
The meeting was presided over by President Aline Hanson, the Préfecture's Chef de Cabinet Emmanuel Effantin and for the Collectivité, Charlotte Terrac, in charge of the crisis unit for natural risks.
The objective was to assess the current resources available to deal with a hurricane strike and the needs of each department. The unpredictability of the path a hurricane will track was frequently emphasised, as demonstrated by Hurricane Gonzalo in 2014, and how fortunate it was that this hurricane was not stronger than it was.
Emmanuel Effantin, with the assistance of a power point presentation, explained the different colour-coded alert levels and the strength categories of hurricanes.
The Collectivité is appealing to the public to keep the territory clean prior to the passing of a hurricane by removing debris, green vegetation and bulky items and taking all to the recycling facility in Galis Bay or to the eco-site in Grand Cayes to avoid having the objects transformed into missiles when being picked up by storm winds.
Debris left on public roads prior to the announcement of a hurricane passing will not be tolerated and violators will be fined and ordered to take the waste to the above mentioned facilities. It is advised from now on to prune tree branches and shrubs and dispose of bulky unwanted items that could be a hazard during a storm.
The same advice applies to proprietors of hotels and residences to keep their properties clean and free of loose debris.
Mechanics, fabrication businesses and sheet metal workers are also urged to remove scrap metal lying around their establishments as these can turn into dangerous projectiles in strong winds.
Gas station managers are reminded that during the red phase of vigilance the station must be closed and automatic fuel distributors turned off. For safety reasons sales of gasoline in jerry cans is limited to 10 litres.
The opening hours of the eco-site at Grand Cayes are Monday to Friday 7:00am to 4:00pm and Saturday 7:00am to 2:00pm.
The recycling facility in Galis Bay is open Monday to Saturday from 10:00am to 6:00pm. There is no charge for French-side residents.
