Some of this country’s finest sons and daughters teamed up with some of the top brass from Tropical Shipping to map out practical solutions to respond to and recover from the impact by natural hazards. This activity was held at the local Sandals resort on Wednesday, May 20 2026 and was designed to give participants an opportunity to plan better to reduce the impacts of rain storms, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and the possibility of tsunamis.
Over 80 participants from the public and private sectors were invited to brainstorm strategies and ideas that will prepare Vincentians for the theme of the workshop: “Without resilience, One Big wave can change everything”. Before the brainstorming activity, several keynote speakers delivered timely addresses all focusing on ways public and private sectors can cooperate to streamline preparedness, response and relief mechanisms, to allow affected communities to bounce back effectively and as quickly as possible from the impact of natural hazards.
The opening ceremony was called to order by Island Manager Cedric McIntyre and thereafter the National Anthem was played by violinist Samuel Toka and opening prayer by Silvan Mc Leod. The Regional Manager Tropical Shipping, Mr. Gerard Bergasse gave an overview of the workshop asking participants to design the best plan to mitigate the effects of disasters. Prime Minister Rt. Hon Dr. Godwin Friday, set the stage for a series of powerful presentations by expert presenters including Director of NEMO Ms Michelle Forbes, Anthony Regisford Executive Director of the Chamber of Industry & Commerce, Mr. Teeka Ramgolan, Environmental Health & Safety Officer for MPOC, Ms.Vanessa Ledesma CEO/Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association and Mr. Billy Jeffers, Manager of the SVG Meteorological Services. Mr. Jeffers noted that while current conditions favor less storms, he warned that those that form could be intense systems like Beryl and Melissa, which we need to prepare for.
Two additional expert presentations were delivered by Ms. Eva Martin and Ms. Jennifer Nugent/Hill. Following a mid morning break, Ms. Martin who is a Maritime Engagement Manager for Global Support and Development spoke about Lessons learned from Disaster Relief Response in the region while Ms.Nugent/Hill, Senior Director Governmental & Community Affairs – Tropical Shipping focused on “Preparing for the Unthinkable”. Mr. Anthony Regisford during his straight forward address noted that “building a culture of preparedness is no longer an option . It is the foundation of our survival” as he spoke to the theme of the workshop; “Without resilience, one big wave can change everything”.
Mr. Regisford went on the say that “the private sector must play a leading role in building this culture of preparedness because there is going to be no abatement to the threat of natural hazards and the recurrence of catastrophic shocks. Preparedness must be a core business strategy. A strategy built on practical, non-negotiable disciplines: backing up our data (to the cloud), cross training our staff, pre-positioning critical inventory in safe zones and having a communications plan when cell towers are down. It must be about prevention, not cure “.
The workshop participants formed two groups following the presentations and were given tasks to identify risks and vulnerabilities to help businesses avoid these risks, while another task was to identify what communications frameworks are necessary for an effective response and recovery communications plan. Also included in the task was to seek appropriate legislation as a deterrent to cyber crime. Following ‘Mellisa’ in Jamaica, it is alleged that several online agencies claiming to be ‘official’ agencies were soliciting and receiving financial and other material assistance on behalf of affected Jamaicans. Whether that material/financial assistance reached the intended recipients is questioned.
The local participants numbering over 60 represented NEMO, NTRC, Flow, Digicel, Supermarkets, NGO’s, Rotary club, Red Cross, Banks, Police & Fire Service, Insurance, YARA, ECGC, Brewery, EC Metals, SVG Port/MPOC, AIA, SOL, Construction Companies, MCMH, SVG Hotel Association, and Senior government officers among others.
Closing remarks were delivered by Mr. Andre Gibson, AVP -Tropical Shipping. This workshop is one of several workshops hosted by Tropical Shipping across the Caribbean and is a demonstration of the main ‘take away’ of this workshop … private sector amplifying the need for corporate society to play/provide an active role in the entire process and network of disaster management … Tony Regisford, while ending his speech summed it up nicely: “We cannot stop the next wave, but when it comes it must meet us as a unit – Prepared, Partnered and Powerful”.
The theme of the one-day workshop was: “WITHOUT RESILIENCE, ONE BIG WAVE CAN CHANGE EVERYTHING” , with a sub theme: “Building a culture of preparedness – When Seconds Count”.