CAPACITY BUILDING FOR CARIBBEAN TSUNAMI WARNINGS: A REGIONAL TRAINING COURSE

Between June 25 and June 30 the Seismic Research Unit (SRU) of the University of the West Indies (UWI) hosted a Caribbean regional training program in Seismology and Tsunami Warnings. A total of 43 participants from 21 countries and territories, representing meteorological, emergency management, and seismological institutions in the region attended the training aimed at developing understanding of the science of tsunamis, hazard and risk assessment, preparedness, education, and outreach, and operational best practices.

As an outcome of the course the participants drafted six recommendations (outlined on the poster) that they felt were priority action items for expeditious realization of a Tsunami Early Warning and Mitigation System.

The program was conducted under the UNESCO IOC banner in response to a call for such a training program at the Second Session of the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for Tsunami and Other Coastal Hazards Warning System for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions (ICG/CARIBE-EWS II), held in Cumanã, Venezuela, March 12-14, 2007. The majority of funding for the course was provided by the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (ODFA) of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Disaster Reduction Center of the UWI, and the US Geological Survey (USGS).