With Hurricane Beryl now a category four hurricane and bearing down on the Caribbean, Public Utilities Minister Marvin Gonzales has warned of possible disruptions to water and electricity supplies.
But he and his colleagues Rural and Local Government Minister Faris Al-Rawi, Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan and Communications Minister Symon de Nobriga urged the the public to remain calm, get their information from trusted sources and follow the government’s lead in preparing for the hurricane’s impact.
The ministers spoke at a media conference at midday on June 30.
Gonzales said disruption to the electricity and water grids in weather situations such as a hurricane was “almost inevitable.”
“What is important is that we put in place the necessary measures to be able to respond in a safe manner (and) that our crews can respond almost on an instantaneous manner as soon as it is safe to do so.”
Beryl, the first named hurricane of the season, is due to make landfall over a number of islands late on June 30. Tobago and north Trinidad are expected to be affected .
Forecasters upgraded the hurricane to a "very dangerous" category four storm and it was expected to strengthen further as it nears Barbados, Dominica, Grenada and Martinique, among others.
The last major hurricane to affect Tobago was Hurricane Ivan in 2004. Ivan caused damage estimated at $4.9 million. A pregnant woman died after a palm tree fell on her house, pinning her to the bed.
Gonzales said an area command centre had been set up in Scarborough. He also said the TT Electricity Commission (T&TEC), Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA), Solid Waste Management Company (SWMCOL), and Telecommunications Services of TT (TSTT) have all implemented appropriate measures to respond to any damage caused by the hurricane.
“A lot of focus will be placed on the windward side of Tobago. We have set up a mobile generator staging facility at Shaw Park. We have ensured that all our emergency vehicles from (T&TEC) are staged at Shaw Park to ensure that we can respond decisively and in a critical manner to any reports of disruption on that part of the island.”
He said WASA has mobilised equipment across both islands to focus on the areas expected to be affected by the hurricane.
“Excavators etcetera have been placed in northern Trinidad and the windward part of Tobago in the event that WASA’s water infrastructure is impacted.
“All standby generators that have been put in place to support these facilities have been fuelled.
"We have also stockpiled on chemicals to provide up to at least five days of supply to some of the water treatment facilities.
“WASA operators have also been monitoring our emergency shelters to ensure that we have a sufficient supply of water in the event that citizens have to report to some of these emergency senders to protect themselves and their families.”
Gonzales said satellite phones were also tested and will be used by co-ordinating agencies in the event of any disruption of normal phone systems.
Wha
