Charlestown-Nevis-The St. Kitts-Nevis Red Cross Society and more specifically, the Nevis Branch of that august body, rolled out the first in a planned series of training sessions in emergency response.
The training session which was held at the Nevis Branch of the Red Cross society’s headquarters at Chapel Street, commenced on Monday 20th May and concluded on Friday 27th May.
A brief opening ceremony, was ably chaired by Branch Director, lead instructor and the individual who came up with the initiative, Nurse Roxanne Brookes.
In her opening remarks, she stated that the St. Kitts-Nevis Red Cross society, has been the primary first aid provider in the federation of St. Kitts and Nevis, for many years but noted that in recent years there has been an increase in the intensity and regularity of disasters in the region.
In 2017, three members of the Red Cress society, travelled to Aruba where they gained the requisite knowledge and were certified as trained emergency respondent instructors.
Due to the exorbitant costs involved in organizing training sessions, the training program has only now become a reality in 2019.
The Police and the Fire services personnel are the first beneficiaries of the training course on Nevis.
Fire official Hodge, in making remarks expressed his gratitude to all of the stakeholders who helped to make the training course possible.
He indicated that the training will serve to keep his organization in a state of readiness and capable of responding to the needs of the general public, as they strive to protect, and safeguard the beloved federation of St. Kitts and Nevis.
Head of the Nevis Disaster Management office, Mr. Brian Dyer, in making remarks, expressed his delight and privilege to be part of such a training program and noted that his institution and the Red Cross society have enjoyed a great working partnership, throughout the years.
He further stated that it was important for the critical response units to be trained and ready to assist in times of need and revealed that the Caribbean region is the second most hazardous place to live, due to the fact that the people in the region, are prone to a multiplicity of potential disasters, which are exacerbated by human activity.
He opined that the program will eventually expand to the wider community and to local volunteers.
He expressed thanks to the donors and sponsors, who made the training a reality.
Superintendent Lyndon David, Divisional commander for the Police in Nevis, encouraged the participants to learn as much as they can and review constantly so that they will eventually become adept at their new found skills.
He stated that emergency response training was critical to the development of any country.
Overseas based instructor, Ms. Anne Highley-Gergel, who is a Nursing Paramedic out of Philadelphia in the USA, indicated that it was a privilege for her to be in Nevis and promised the participants that she will impart her knowledge in a manner that they could understand.
Nurse Roxanne in expressing her thank yous, stated that she greatly appreciates the donor partner that made this important trading program possible.
She also used the opportunity to encourage companies /businesses (especially those with a large work force) and others, to have members of their staff trained at the EMR level.
‘The more persons trained at the community level, the more prepared our community will be to effectively respond, when the need arises,’ she stated.
She also expressed thanks to the other instructors from St. Kitts and a special thank you was expressed to Ms. Anne Highley-Gergel.