Oil threat for Bahamas 'not over'
By ALISON LOWE
Tribune Staff Reporter
alowe@tribunemedia.net:
A lead co-ordinator in the government's Gulf oil spill response team says that despite British Petroleum's success in stopping the oil gushing from the damaged well "the threat is not over" as far as the Bahamas is concerned.
Director of the National Emergency Management Agency, Captain Stephen Russell, who heads the National Oil Spill Contingency Committee, said the group has submitted a plan to continue monitoring any potential impact from the oil spill until the end of the year, at the earliest.
"We haven't slackened, we are keeping our eye on it," said Mr Russell yesterday morning. He noted that a team of experts set off on a second exploratory mission from Nassau to the Cay Sal Bank in the Bahama Banks on Monday, to continue taking samples and checking for any tar balls in Bahamian waters.
The team of scientists and environmentalists was scheduled to arrive in Cay Sal yesterday afternoon to begin their investigations.
Their visit comes just under a week after BP announced that after 85 days and the release of up to 184 million gallons of oil into the marine environment, it had successfully capped the leaking well, stopping the flow of crude.
Officials were cautious in their response to the news last Thursday that the placement of a 75-ton cap had successfully halted the flow of oil. US president Barack Obama called the development a "positive sign" but added, "We're still in the testing phase."
In the last few days some oil and gas has been detected around the well, raising concerns that the cap may not be withstanding the pressure from the oil within the well.
Hope
However, officials have expressed hope that the cap can largely contain the oil until relief wells are drilled which are expected to provide a permanent fix.
So far, no evidence of oil having reached Bahamian waters has been found. The spill has been accumulating in the Gulf of Mexico and along the southern coast of the United States since April 22, after the destruction of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig following an explosion at the site.
The oil rig was leased to British energy company BP at the time of the incident and the company has promised to pay legitimate claims for compensation stemming from the extensive damage that is resulting from the oil being released into the environment.
Mr Russell told The Tribune that officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Attorney General's Office continue to pursue the possibility of seeking compensation from the company for the Bahamas to cover the cost of efforts already undertaken by the government's Oil Spill Contingency Committee in response to the spill.
"It has been discussed at two levels locally, and at the CARICOM level, so we will see. We'll allow Foreign Affairs and the AG's office to see how we can engage BP either through the British Foreign Office or the US office. Likewise, we'll see CARICOM's approach," said Capt Russell.
July 21, 2010
tribune242
A political blog about Bahamian politics in The Bahamas, Bahamian Politicans - and the entire Bahamas political lot. Bahamian Blogger Dennis Dames keeps you updated on the political news and views throughout the islands of The Bahamas without fear or favor. Bahamian Politicians and the Bahamian Political Arena: Updates one Post at a time on Bahamas Politics and Bahamas Politicans; and their local, regional and international policies and perspectives.
Showing posts with label Stephen Russell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Stephen Russell. Show all posts
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Bradley Roberts - Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) chairman raises National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) concerns after Grand Bahama tornado
By MEGAN REYNOLDS
Tribune Staff Reporter
mreynolds@tribunemedia.net:
THE National Emergency Management Agency has come under fire for its failure to effectively issue warnings and respond to the Grand Bahama tornado on Monday.
Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) chairman Bradley Roberts has raised concerns about NEMA's lack of resources in Grand Bahama and the Family Islands as well as insufficient training and systems in place to prepare for and respond to dangerous weather in the future.
The tornado that struck Grand Bahama at around 11.30am on Monday claimed the lives of three maintenance workers who were trapped in a 400 ft gantry crane that came crashing down and was submerged in the water at the Freeport Container Port (FCP).
Several others were injured and witnesses said they had little or no warning to seek protection from the storm.
Warnings:
Although weather warnings were issued in South Florida early Monday morning, and a meteorological observer in Grand Bahama alerted a forecaster at the Met Office in Nassau to issue a public tornado warning for the island, a breakdown in protocol meant the warning was not issued.
Environment Minister Earl Deveaux maintains the staff responsible will face consequences for the breach.
However he maintains the port was aware of the severe weather approaching and a warning would not have changed the devastating outcome.
"No warnings or lack thereof could be blamed for the horrible and fatal consequences," Dr Deveaux said.
"All of us are deeply affected by the fatal and destructive events."
Now Mr Roberts has detailed further actions that he says should have been taken to minimise the tornado's impact on Grand Bahama.
He said NEMA should have immediately posted public warnings, closed schools, appointed an incident commander to oversee a search and rescue operation and damage assessment.
A hotline and public information centre for those affected should have also been established, as well as a counselling service and crisis information centre, Mr Roberts said.
According to the PLP chairman, NEMA thrived under the PLP administration as it accelerated the development of a national emergency plan and invested in a number of intensive training on damage assessment and emergency response.
Programmes:
However the organisation has since suffered under the FNM as programmes were not sustained and there has been no national training for three years, he said.
Mr Roberts further laments the lack of NEMA offices in any of the Family Islands where there should be establishments and people in place to provide an emergency response.
Director of NEMA Captain Stephen Russell did not respond to these allegations before The Tribune went to press.
However Mr Roberts ultimately holds Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham accountable when NEMA falls short.
"As a result of this government's petty partisan policies and its commitment to destroy 'Christie programmes', NEMA was a total failure to the people of Grand Bahama during their hour of need," Mr Roberts said.
"A day later the above mentioned plans have still not been done or even started; this is indeed a classic case of a disaster within a disaster.
"The people of Grand Bahama must hold Mr Ingraham and the FNM government accountable for its failure to provide all the safety mechanisms to ensure mitigation against lost of life, property and unnecessary grief and suffering."
April 01, 2010
tribune242
Tribune Staff Reporter
mreynolds@tribunemedia.net:
THE National Emergency Management Agency has come under fire for its failure to effectively issue warnings and respond to the Grand Bahama tornado on Monday.
Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) chairman Bradley Roberts has raised concerns about NEMA's lack of resources in Grand Bahama and the Family Islands as well as insufficient training and systems in place to prepare for and respond to dangerous weather in the future.
The tornado that struck Grand Bahama at around 11.30am on Monday claimed the lives of three maintenance workers who were trapped in a 400 ft gantry crane that came crashing down and was submerged in the water at the Freeport Container Port (FCP).
Several others were injured and witnesses said they had little or no warning to seek protection from the storm.
Warnings:
Although weather warnings were issued in South Florida early Monday morning, and a meteorological observer in Grand Bahama alerted a forecaster at the Met Office in Nassau to issue a public tornado warning for the island, a breakdown in protocol meant the warning was not issued.
Environment Minister Earl Deveaux maintains the staff responsible will face consequences for the breach.
However he maintains the port was aware of the severe weather approaching and a warning would not have changed the devastating outcome.
"No warnings or lack thereof could be blamed for the horrible and fatal consequences," Dr Deveaux said.
"All of us are deeply affected by the fatal and destructive events."
Now Mr Roberts has detailed further actions that he says should have been taken to minimise the tornado's impact on Grand Bahama.
He said NEMA should have immediately posted public warnings, closed schools, appointed an incident commander to oversee a search and rescue operation and damage assessment.
A hotline and public information centre for those affected should have also been established, as well as a counselling service and crisis information centre, Mr Roberts said.
According to the PLP chairman, NEMA thrived under the PLP administration as it accelerated the development of a national emergency plan and invested in a number of intensive training on damage assessment and emergency response.
Programmes:
However the organisation has since suffered under the FNM as programmes were not sustained and there has been no national training for three years, he said.
Mr Roberts further laments the lack of NEMA offices in any of the Family Islands where there should be establishments and people in place to provide an emergency response.
Director of NEMA Captain Stephen Russell did not respond to these allegations before The Tribune went to press.
However Mr Roberts ultimately holds Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham accountable when NEMA falls short.
"As a result of this government's petty partisan policies and its commitment to destroy 'Christie programmes', NEMA was a total failure to the people of Grand Bahama during their hour of need," Mr Roberts said.
"A day later the above mentioned plans have still not been done or even started; this is indeed a classic case of a disaster within a disaster.
"The people of Grand Bahama must hold Mr Ingraham and the FNM government accountable for its failure to provide all the safety mechanisms to ensure mitigation against lost of life, property and unnecessary grief and suffering."
April 01, 2010
tribune242
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