Tuesday, 7th April 2009 - 14:43CET
Malta disaster contingency plans 'under constant review'
Civil Protection workers working in the earthquake striken region of Abruzzo in Italy.
Contingency plans for a national disaster such as an earthquake, but also emergencies such as pandemic flu are being constantly reviewed and improved, Parliamentary Secretary Mario Galea said today.
Speaking in the context of last Monday's earthquake in Italy, Mr Galea said that contingency plans for different scenarios had been prepared by the Civil Protection Department in association with the medical authorities and the other services and both the hospitals and the services had a readily available stock of blankets and medicinals prepared in containers and rucksacks for use where needed.
The CPD had also trained volunteers to help in major disasters.
The Parliamentary Secretary for Health, Joseph Cassar, said that Mater Dei Hospital was built to resist earthquakes, and recovery rooms could be quickly converted to intensive therapy units.
Protocols on work practices had also been drawn up and should a major emergency occur, medical staff would focus on that emergency and put off non-urgent medical cases.
Dr Cassar said the medical authorities had also geared up for a possible flu pandemic and more stocks of vaccines would be purchased as the existing ones expired.
He said that although originally Karin Grech Hospital had been earmarked for use as a pandemic flu hospital, those plans have now been revised and a section of Mater Dei would be used against.
The comments were given at a press conference to mark World Health Day. The theme of World Health Day is safe emergency departments.
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Comments
1. I assume they have stipulated meeting points in case of a national disaster. Trying to contact volunteers by mobile phone after a major disaster would be next to impossible since the system will almost certainly be down.
2. I don't think our roads would be able to withstand a strong earthquake. How will volunteers from all across the island reach the meeting points?
CPD are trained professionals so I am sure they have perfectly adequate contingency plans. It is good to ask certain questions, however I am sure they would have done their contingency plans with foerign organisations that know their job well under pressure of disasters. I would think that the first thing the Maltese authorities would do in such cases is to accept assistance from foreign rescue workers.
I.Abela
I have to agree with MGauci, I think you would need trained professionals to sift through the damaged buildings, as one wrong move of any debris, and the remaining structure would crumble. However, I think you are taking questions put here by MGauci and C.Delia a bit on the wrong foot by responding in a not so nice manner, as trained rescue person you should be reassuring people not blowing out at them :)
CPD
Well done for keeping the contingency plans under constant review!
Apart from red cross, St john ambulance and St John rescue corps, we also have volunteers from the Emergency Fire & Rescue Unit, which is a philatropoc organistaion which trains it's volunteers for such cases together with CPD members and volunteers. www.efru.net
Yes I will do as you ask, send a letter to the minister. heh. Good night my lad.
Also be informed that at 7 years old you are not a scout, but if I were under a pile of debris I wouldn't care how old is the person who finds me. It could be a puppy for all I care.
It also turns out that I am quite handy when it comes to SAR. I do know a cahoot or two about SAR, I am skilled in underwater SAR, cliffside SAR, FireFighting and the use of BSA equipment, handling of Fire Arms, and First Aid, yes and also a Scout.
Now please do some research, or cut a long story short and send an email to the Ministry for Home Affairs or directly to the Civil Protection Department.
Yeah right -lets see my 7 year old scout son looking for you under the debris!! you need specialised people rummaging through the debris. Things could give way depending how you handle the torn building. Scouts in Malta, of a certain age and with special skills are quite limited, if any at all. This is not WW2, health and safety dictates otherwise in the 2009.
If you don't know a cahoot about SAR, I would suggest you take a first aid course as a basis to build on more specialised tasks thereafter.
My questions remain, to the informed of course not the wannabee chopper squad.
Then again, your comment doesn't make much sense because we do have crisis contingency plans, we do have trained rescue people, and we also do have agreements with other countries. So, what was your question again ??
It's called Risk assessment & management.
Picture this, Malta being very small, an earthquake of a large magnitutde would flatten most of Malta. Our buildings are heavy and not designed for earthquakes. If a lot of "rescue" people are in need of rescue themselves we are in jeopardy. Furthmore, apart from the official authorites, some of the other organisations (yeah right scouts!) will probably first be looking at their belongings and looking for their families (immediate and greater).
The intiial hours are curcial to find people alive - and Malta would need foreign help (immediately) to help scour all the areas in such a short period of time. As regards airport and what not, its not the issue, there are boats that could arrive from Italy or Libya is a very short time (2hrs approx).
I shall close in the same way I started, it's called Risk assessment and management.
@ Carmen Delia - I would suggest posting comments about land speculation on other related articles. I assure you we have enough open space to built 3 other Maltas (In case of a disaster). CPD headquarter have a lot of open space, The Hal Far Race Track is huge, Ta' Qali and Armier also have plenty of space, there is a full sized football pitch in almost every locality, a many scout groups have their own designated camping sites. How much more space do you need?
Civil Protection apart of having it's own volunteers, there are other private entites that together with Civil Protection Department train on such cases.....
ALLA HARES ghax kieku nsiebu ruhna f bahar ta gebel kullimkien