My thoughts on…Jamaica’s new tsunami warning system
January 11th 2006 -
On January 9th, Minister Dean Peart and U.S Ambassador Brenda Johnson signed a statement of intent to begin construction of Jamaica’s tsunami warning centre in Manchester. It will serve the whole Caribbean, and be funded by the U.S government. It will be part of a regional warning system, and be essentially a seismograph station, detecting tremors that could cause tsunamis. The process of implementation will cost approximately US $200,000. Personally I believe that this is a waste of money. Sure, I’m all for preparedness, but for something as improbable as a tsunami? One has never occurred in the Caribbean, and the chances of one ever happening are slim to none, and if one does occur and we’re warned, what then? Tsunamis move at a tremendous speed, so we’d have only minutes to evacuate, which is quite impossible. So we’d be screwed! I’d be more in support of a tsunami defence system. Also, when you consider the vast number of more important things that the money could be put towards, such as jobs, education and crimefighting, it just doesn’t seem sensible.
But this isn’t the first time the Jamaican government has implemented a ridiculous precautionary measure because of world events. After 9/11, the Terrorism Prevention Bill was proposed to protect the nation. It was soon scrapped because of its vague definition of the word “terrorist.” It had the potential for human rights violations, because a person or entity could be identified as a terrorist by the government, and be punished at its discretion. I believe that Jamaica won’t get any real use out of this centre, and I hope that it’ll never be needed.
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Abeni Says:
January 12th, 2006 at 7:13 am
They probably working on the be prepared theory.Warnings,in the unlikely event can help people move to higher ground.I think I remember during the Asian tsunami they were talking about warning etc
Margaret Feinberg Says:
January 12th, 2006 at 8:04 pm
I’m a fan of warnings…but then again I live on the coast.
letter shredder Says:
January 12th, 2006 at 8:39 pm
hi, there! found your blog thru mandz…
nice blog, and well written.
cheers!
Jeff Kozlowski Says:
January 12th, 2006 at 10:39 pm
Great Blog. Very insightful and up to date on many current events!
Leon Says:
January 13th, 2006 at 8:41 pm
Tsunamis are known to knock down skyscrapers. There is no higher ground.
Mad Bull Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 7:05 am
We have had tsunamis in the Caribbean, just not on the scale as happened in Asia last year. Also, there most definitely is higher ground. Go live in Stony Hill Square and see if the tsunami reaches you.
Leon Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 6:54 pm
I stand corrected.
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