The last paragraph would be laughable if it wasn't so pathetic.
Mayor Ray Nagin leaves today for Cuba
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2009/10/nagin_other_officials_head_to.htmlMayor Ray Nagin and a delegation of city and state officials are headed to Cuba this morning to exchange ideas with the communist country about preparing for hurricanes.
Nagin returns Oct. 22, according to his office, which didn't announce the trip until it issued a press release at 5:01 a.m. today. The release did not say how much the trip will cost or who will pay for it, but The Times-Picayune has sent questions to Nagin's press office seeking that information.
In the last four months, Nagin has taken a 10-day trip to China and Australia -- billed as an economic development excursion -- and a three-day excursion to Mexico City on AeroMexico's inaugural flight from New Orleans to the Mexican capital. He was quaratined for 3 days in China after sitting next to a passenger suspected of having swine flu.
The release states that the mayor's trip comes "less than 24 hours after President Barack Obama talked during his visit to New Orleans about the importance of flood protection and disaster preparedness."
According to the news release, Nagin is the first New Orleans mayor in 50 years to make an official visit to Cuba. Officials issued that bit of trivia after retracting an initial report that the Nagin would be the first U.S. mayor to officially visit the island nation in a half-century.
While it was scant on details about exactly what the mayor hopes to learn, it did say the delegation will meet with the Latin American Center for Disaster Medicine and learn about the way Cuba's defense officials prepare for disasters. The group will also meet with Cuban ministers of exterior relations and culture.
While tourists are still prohibited from traveling to Cuba, government travelers on official business can enter the country if they receive a license from the U.S. State Department, according to the State Department's Web site.
Accompanying Nagin are state Rep. Karen Carter Peterson, City Councilwoman Cynthia Hedge-Morrell, Chief Administrative Officer Brenda Hatfield, Police Superintendent Warren Riley, Fire Department Superintendent Charles Parent, EMS Director Jullette Saussy, Director of Emergency Preapredness Lt. Col. Jerry Sneed, New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport Chairman Dan Packard, Regional Transit Authority Chairman Cesar Burgos, "and others, " according to the release.
Nagin also plans to share with Cuban officials how the city moved thousands of residents out of New Orleans as Hurricane Gustav threatened in September 2008, his press office said.
From OXFAM America ...
DISASTER PLANNING ESSENTIAL FOR MINIMIZING RISKSIt might seem that a thorough, well-funded disaster plan is a luxury an impoverished country cannot afford, but there are cases of individual communities and even entire countries that have overcome lack of money and created effective ways to reduce risks and save lives. For a small investment in planning, millions of lives can be saved.
Oxfam America recently studied the experience of Cuba in its development of disaster prevention and mitigation programs. Situated in the Caribbean Sea, Cuba frequently stands in the way of serious hurricanes. While its neighbors are battered, losing lives and property, Cuba is unusually good at withstanding these calamities, and suffers much fewer dead.
Oxfam’s report, entitled Weathering the Storm: Lessons in Risk Reduction in Cuba cites a number of attributes of Cuba’s risk reduction program that can be applied by other countries. Three in particular are transferable to Asia and other regions:
* Disaster Preparedness: Cuba was especially good at mobilizing entire communities to develop their own disaster preparations. This involves mapping out vulnerable areas of the community, creating emergency plans, and actually simulating emergencies so people can practice evacuations and other measures designed to save lives. When disaster strikes, people know what to do.
* Commitment of Resources: Cuba’s strong central government prioritizes resources for its civil defense department. This helps the country to build up a common understanding of the importance of saving lives, and the citizens trust that their contributions to the government are well used for this purpose. Their collaboration on developing emergency plans helped build confidence in the government, so people trust in the plan they helped develop.
* Communications: The communications system for emergencies in Cuba builds on local resources. Using local radio stations and other media to issue warnings on potential hazards also reinforces the disaster preparations. Since the local population is already involved in mapping risks and creating emergency plans, they are more inclined to act on emergency bulletins. Good communications, packaged simply, and built on existing, commonly used resources, is another way to build trust in disaster preparations.
Cuba is a unique example. There is a strong central government committed to protecting all its citizens, even the poorest and most isolated who are typically the most at risk. The most common natural disaster in Cuba is a hurricane, a threat visible for days and even weeks in advance. Yet building a culture of disaster preparedness, and involving local communities in mitigating risks, are strategies that can be applied in many other places, regardless of how rich or poor a country might be.
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