CRGR | CENTROAMÉRICA | 22 NOV.- The Regional Agreement for Risk Management (CRGR), in conjunction with the National Risk Management Tables COCIGER Guatemala, MPGR El Salvador, MNIGR Honduras and MNGR Nicaragua measured last November 21st of this year, their capacity of response when developing a regional simulation about Hurricane Hanna that affected the Central American region in the framework of the regional exercise called Central America is prepared!
The Executive Secretary of the CRGR, Wilson Galo, explained that the initiative intends to measure the capacity and test the instruments of response to an emergency of such magnitude of the CRGR and National Tables.
This first regional simulation Central America is prepared! It counted with the participation of 4 countries of Central America and was developed within the framework of the project «Strengthening of networks for disaster management at the local, national and regional level in four countries of Central America, phase II» funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation , led and executed by the CRGR and the National Tables of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.
In the simulation, personnel from the entities that make up the CRGR participated through the membership of the National Tables. Likewise, this exercise had the support in the organization and coordination of Oxfam and people specialized in the area as observers and evaluators.
SIMULATION DATA:
Hurricane Hanna was generated in the Caribbean, affecting mainly in the countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. Given this scenario, the civil protection systems of each country issue a red alert and in some countries a state of disaster and calamity, In order to provide assistance to the affected sectors and safeguard the lives of the most vulnerable people in the face of these events.
The National Tables were sending the respective information from their operations centers, activated their response teams, who were in total coordination with the coordination entities, the regional technical teams and decision makers of the CRGR with the objective of responding efficiently to a real case
The exercise was developed with clear objectives, one of the main ones was the application of the response instruments of the CRGR and National Tables: regional and national level protocols, coverage mapping and capacity assessment, information and communication system before a humanitarian crisis.
This exercise also served to strengthen the regional mechanisms of humanitarian response to disasters in Central America, so that each country will be able to evaluate, from this simulation, the procedures separately at the national and regional levels.
During the simulation, the following national and regional teams were activated:
Humanitarian response
National and regional coordination teams
Communications
Specialized teams (Water and sanitation and hygiene promotion (WASH), livelihoods, humanitarian leadership, management of emergency centers (MACOE)
Executive Secretary and her technical team.
Evaluation in seismic affectations
Facilitators
Administrators
Control cells
Membership of the Tables (departmental and local organizations)
With the activation of these teams, the response capacities, agility and adequate knowledge of the coordination of the CRGR and the National Tables of each country before an event of hydrometeorological origin were put to the test.
As a network of 125 civil society organizations in Central America, the CRGR and the National Risk Management Tables; COCIGER de Guatemala, MPGR El Salvador, MNIGR Honduras and MNGR Nicaragua are committed to continue strengthening their capacities, to develop a constant improvement in the processes of integral risk management and emergency response in favor of the most vulnerable communities in the region.