GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Disaster Coordinator/Fire Chief Clive Richardson would like to thank all emergency services, fire fighters, ambulance personnel, police, the various government ministries especially Ministry VROMI, the Coast Guard, Marines and others for their role played in connection with the passing of Hurricane Gonzalo.
Richardson would also like to thank contractors who are still busy today and in the coming days with the on-going national clean-up effort, for the very important role that they are playing in getting the country back on track.
"There are many lessons to be learnt from the passing of Hurricane Gonzalo. We will review, analyze and adjust our disaster response mechanisms where necessary.
"One of the first things is that you must always be prepared at the beginning of the hurricane season. This is an individual responsibility of every resident and business because we are in the hurricane belt. Preparation is key to minimizing the effects of a hurricane.
"You never know when a storm could be at your doorstep, and can develop very quickly into a hurricane as happened in this case. This is what happened between Sunday and Monday of October 12 and 13.
"Unfortunately, there was one loss of life, and on behalf of the emergency services, I express our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the mariner.
"We must be thankful that the category 1 hurricane did not become a category 2 or 3 before it passed our country. As you are aware, Hurricane Gonzalo became a major category 4 hurricane in the open Atlantic Ocean, so we have a lot to be thankful for.
"We have bounced back quickly which as a tourism destination we must. Much emphasis and effort is going into rebuilding and removal of debris and the reconnection of those to the grid of essential services such as electricity and water.
"I would like to say thank you once again to all those who played their role during this natural disaster and we will fully recover in the coming days, weeks and months. Much has already been done in a space of week for us to bounce back so quickly, because we are a resilient people," Disaster Coordinator/Fire Chief Clive Richardson said on Sunday.
