|
Don’t send wards to schools in
earthquake prone areas, parents advised
Accra, Nov. 7,
Ghanadot/GNA- Parents have been advised to ensure that
schools to which they sent their wards were built to resist
disaster such as earth quake and lightening.
Mr Yaw Amoako, a former Executive Director, Geological
Survey Department who made the call in Accra on Wednesday
said since Ghana was an earthquake prone nation it was
important that schools were built to resist earth quakes and
other natural disaster.
Schools, he noted were places that had a relatively larger
population and in case of any earthquake there could be
larger number of people who would be involved in the
fatalities if facilities are not in place.
Mr Amoako was addressing about 50 participants, mainly
Directors of Education from the Greater Accra Region who
participated in a day’s national education experts seminar,
where he presented a paper on “Building Disaster Resistant
School: with Reference to Earthquake,” as part of activities
marking World Disaster Day Celebrations.
The seminar was organized by the National Disaster
Management Organisation (NADMO) on the theme; “Disaster Risk
Reduction Begins at School”.
Mr Amoako said the National Building Regulation LI1630 of
1996 requires that buildings within earthquake prone areas
be built with earthquake resistant materials, but
“unfortunately, almost all schools in Ghana, both public and
private, that were in the earthquake prone areas had not
been built to earthquake resistant specifications”.
Parents, he noted could help rectify some of these anomalies
by ensuring that schools to which they sent their wards were
built to specification.
He said with pressure from parents, school owners and
authorities would ensure that all non-earthquake resistant
schools were strengthened or retrofitted so that they would
be able to stand an earthquake should it occur.
Mr Amoako said the emphasis on disaster management was now
being shifted from the more expensive emergency response and
relief stage to the more cost effective mitigation phase
where hazard resistant buildings/ structures were to be
constructed.
He therefore advised school owners and school authorities to
put in place short-term preparedness plans and long term
mitigation plans, including procedures for actions before,
during and after earthquake.
“These procedures should be revised at least once every year
so that if any earthquake should occur the schools would not
be found wanting,’ he said.
Mr J. K Anaglate, Chairman, Hydrological, Meteological
Technical Committee urged teachers not to send children home
if was about to rain because in case of flood some of the
children could be washed away.
“Most schools have been sited on high lands so it was safer
for children to remain in school under the watchful eyes of
teachers than being sent home on their own.
“I believe in case of heavy flood parents would always go to
the school to check for their wards no matter how late,” he
said.
Mr Anaglate advocated that all schools made provision for
thunder arresters so that lightning does not strike the
children when are on the school premises.
Mr Ernest P. Nyame-Annan, a First Aid Instructor urged all
school authorities to form Red Clubs in their school to
teach the children how to give first aid in the event of a
casualty.
He said it was unfortunate that it was mainly private school
that had such clubs to the detriment of the government ones.
GNA
|
