Hurricane Preparedness Initiative At Its Optimum Down South

With the country going into the second month of the hurricane season, initiatives to ensure that hurricane preparedness is at its optimum are still on-going. This morning two contracts worth just under 900,000 dollars were signed for the retrofitting of 7 hurricane shelters in the Punta Gorda District, which was last year ravaged by hurricane Iris. School buildings and community centers in Medina Bank, Big Falls, Corazon Creek, San Jose, Santa Cruz and Colombia will see improvement. These include the strengthening of vulnerable elements in existing structures particularly the building's roofs as well as the addition of sanitary facilities and kitchens. Moneys were secured by diverting funds from two existing projects, the Hurricane Rehabilitation and Disaster Preparedness Project as well as from the Belize Agricultural Health Authority.