The Caribbean is no stranger to seismic natural disaster, and
after last week’s quake and devastation in Japan authorities in
33 Caribbean states don’t need to be told twice that it could
happen there too. As such, those nations will participate in the
first-ever full-scale international exercise on March 23
simulating a 7.6 earthquake off the American Virgin Islands and
the ensuing tusnami. Known as Caribe Wave 11, the exercise calls
for the fictitious earthquake to trigger disaster preparedness
alerts and warning systems to ensure that they work properly.
Bulletins will be issued per emergency protocol from the West
Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center and the Pacific Tsunami
Warning Center, and from there emergency management organization
are expected to spring into action. This isn’t just a test of
the communications channels. While residents won’t necessarily
be required to evacuate coastal cities, emergency personnel
(weather forecast offices, police forces, coast guard units,
etc.) in all 33 countries w