Because of Hurricane Melissa, there is now a serious outbreak of leptospirosis in the island, “not unexpected,” according to the report. The disease has increased the hurricane’s death toll, having taken the lives of eight people up to now. Many more are ill.
Education must be part of the hardening of Jamaica’s infrastructure so that it can survive natural disasters, for they are likely to be of unprecedented power, going forward. The island is now on permanent alert for what is promised as an extremely powerful earthquake. And, what with Beryl last year, Melissa just now, and the continuing threat of even larger storms, we need to be prepared for violent, destructive earth events.
There was a long-ago initiative (or perhaps it was only an idea?) spearheaded by social studies specialists in the Faculty of Education at UWI, Mona, to infuse disaster preparedness into all levels of the school curriculum. It surely wouldn’t hurt if, starting from dem likl bit, Caribbean children learned and were regularly reminded as they grew up of the dangers of storms and earthquakes, and how to avoid, or at least minimize them. And not children alone. I remember when I did adult training, my classes began with a short drill as to what to do in case of an earthquake. Not a difficult thing to do, nor a bad practice. In fact, regular programs on public media that teach us about the causes and effects of cataclysms, how best to prepare for them, survive them, and recover from them, must be a priority from now on, and not just on government information programs. If it takes advertisement on commercial media, at champs, or plays and pantomimes, so be it.
We must be educated about things likely to be a danger, not just during, but in the wake of natural disasters—hurricanes and earthquakes, floods and storm surge. They not only destroy infrastructure, confronting us with things like fallen electric wires that are still live, and shaky buildings likely to collapse. They contaminate our environment with poisons—pesticides for agriculture, for instance, and chemicals for pest control and environmental management. In normal circumstances, these are under safe lock and key, but violent events often tear them loose and scatter them, putting our lungs and limbs in danger. Catastrophes can also transform our habitats into Petrie dishes, perfect for breeding diseases like leptospirosis, dengue fever, typhoid and even cholera. There’s no doubt nature in a bad mood can create perilous circumstances, so we need to be acutely aware of what these hazards are. Like… we should know that after heavy rainfall of any kind, we must be careful of contact with puddles, ponds, rivers, and moist soil, especially in farming or pen keeping areas. Like… we should know that after an earthquake, we must avoid sinkholes, as well as slopes, hillsides and any places where there are rocks, stones or loose soil. Aftershocks that inevitably follow earthquakes inflict equally serious damage.
I’m not saying awareness will save every life when things are all shook up or when the skies open and the wind gets wild. I’m not suggesting that being on the lookout will alwaysprevent people catching diseases. But awareness minimizes the number of persons who are likely to be hurt or to get ill and ensures we are at least on the lookout for symptoms of illness, especially in children, seniors and people who may seem to be well at first.
Here are some useful articles: https://www.jeh.neha.org/article/142102-hurricanes-pathogenic-diseases-and-health-disparities
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0033350621004364
After we study and study, we need a loud notification in we head that say, when storm pass and ground stop move, dat is when some trouble done, but plenty trouble just getting ready to start. Right at dat very time, we must have a clear idea of what to do and what not to do…
Leave a Reply