Jamaica: Let’s get physical - Calling all people with disabilities, are we ready for hurricane season?

By Mikael Graham

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According to an online survey conducted by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), people living with disabilities across the world are rarely consulted about their needs in times of disasters. In cases where they need to evacuate, such as during floods or earthquakes, only 20 per cent of respondents said they could evacuate immediately without difficulty, six per cent said they would not be able to evacuate at all and the remainder said they would be able to evacuate with a degree of difficulty.

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What private and public sector organisations can do to protect the disabled:

• Launch public education campaigns tailored for all members of the disabled community to explore preparation and response actions prior to and during natural disaster season
• Create programme management machinery to manage all PWDs before, during and after natural disaster season
• Connect with regional disaster management organisations such as ODPEM and Caribbean Disaster and Emergency Management Agency with a view of creating plans and providing support needed for PWDs. 
• Partner with JCPD to support disaster preparedness activities and plans.

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