National Disaster Coordinator Partly Attributes Culture Of Hurricane Preparedness For Success In Containing COVID-19

Basseterre, St. Kitts, July 2, 2020 (SKNIS): Success in containing the COVID-19 virus within the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis has been attributed partly to the culture of hurricane preparedness, says the National Disaster Coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Abdias Samuel, during an interview on June 30.

He said, “We have seen economies impacted because of the mismanagement which stems from cultural beliefs.”

However, Mr. Samuel said that “in St. Kitts and Nevis, the population has to be lauded because once we were advised of the measures necessary and we carried out a massive educational and awareness campaign then our population adapted quickly.”

He said that this adaption occurred quickly because of the knowledge people have of disaster preparedness because of our susceptibility to hurricanes.

“That quick response from our population with the necessary structure that we (the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis) put in place is what helped St. Kitts and Nevis to be among the top countries in the world in terms of flattening the curve quickly,” Mr. Samuel said.