April 13th 2015 marks 36 years since the last eruption of the La Soufriere volcano. The National Emergency Management Organisation (NEMO), will be joined by the Seismic Research Centre (SRC), of The University of the West Indies and the Soufriere Monitoring Unit (SMU), to commemorate the anniversary and to raise awareness of the risk and science associated with an active volcano. The volcano awareness activities will take place during the period 13th - 28th April.
This year, NEMO will be targeting primary and secondary school students throughout mainland St. Vincent and two communities which are likely to be impacted by an eruption of La Soufriere. A community meeting will also be held in Owia on Tuesday 21st April and in Chateaubelair on Tuesday 28th April in the evening to look at the Revised Draft St. Vincent and the Grenadines National Volcano Emergency Plan (NVEP), focusing on the alert and call out protocols as it relates to response at the community level.
On Wednesday 22nd April, NEMO will conduct a national workshop to present the Plan and a Desktop Simulation Exercise on Thursday 23rd April to test this plan. The workshop will be a working session to outline the functions and responsibilities of the response agencies involved in a volcanic emergency and an orientation for the special provisions for Alerts and Warnings, Transportation and Evacuation, Emergency Communication and Search and Rescue as outlined in the Plan. The Desktop Simulation Exercise will provide the opportunity for response agencies to practice selected Standard Operation Procedures (SOP’s) using the Plan.
On Friday 24th April, NEMO will conduct an Educational Field Tour to La Soufriere Volcano, under the guidance of Dr. Richard Robertson,
Director of the SRC, of The University of the West Indies. The public is invited to participate in this activity. Transportation will be provided and interested persons are asked to register at NEMO.
Although La Soufriere has been quiet for some time, it is still an active volcano and can erupt again. Citizens should know where they live in relation to the volcano and in which hazard zone they are located. The 1979 eruption demonstrated that the volcano can move from relative calm to full scale eruption within 48 hours. This is a reminder of the importance of having a family emergency plan for your family to evacuate at short notice.
