Guyana like any developing country can be and has been impacted tremendously by the impact of climate change, such as floods and rain storms with heavy winds, and to some extent man-made disasters. A robust civil defence plan is a major key in risk aversion. A total upgrade of the current CDC is needed as well as a review, tabling, passage and implementation of the Disaster Risk Management Bill .

The CDC should be audited to get an idea of where improvements should be made. Ideally there should also be a thorough study to determine what can be done to make the CDC more prepared and modernized under the following ambits:

• Drones for surveying and search and rescues given Guyana’s terrain of rocky interiors and a large coastline
• Apps and online alert systems
• Early warning systems
• Close link with the Hydro- Meteorological office
• Well maintained fleet of vehicles and vessels
• A strong volunteer body with licenses for drones and thermal -imaging cameras can impact search and rescue operations. This would include an intensive training programme for pilots and copilots.

Prevention

An important aspect of the Disaster Management is prevention, and we need to study the rate at which the sea is rising and determine the best plan for our coastal inhabitants. That solution will need data to be used. We propose building a model that will show the rate that the sea is rising at: this will show how much of our land will be affected by this rise over a set period of years, show the changes to the land and sea expected in 10 year periods, ideally giving a view of the future impacts that will need to be mitigated. Armed with this data we can then establish a plan of action, inclusive of sea defense and drainage upgrades as well as relocation of some coastal residents (mandatory or voluntary based on the risk).

Preparedness

Establishment of a number of modern operations and response centers in strategic geographical locations, all properly equipped to deal with multiple situations, especially those that are projected to be common for the location will assist regionally and cut response times to areas outside of the main location of the CDC. A wide spread training programme engaging communities as well as trained personnel in as many communities as possible close to the geographical response station will allow for in cases of emergency the response will be by persons knowledgeable about customs and terrain of individual areas.