Peters Everson J
Lecturer, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of West Indies, Trinidad.
Disasters. 2015 Oct;39(4):738-61. doi: 10.1111/disa.12123. Epub 2015 Mar 5.
The impacts of drought in the Caribbean have not been as dramatic as in some other parts of world, but it is not exempt from the experiences of drought. As a result of the effects of a prolonged drought in 2009/2010, the agenda for the 21st Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) paid particular attention to the issue of drought. This paper reviews the management framework for responding to drought disasters in five CARICOM countries. The paper also reports on some of the effects of the 2009/2010 drought with particular reference to Grenada and the Grenadines. During the drought in these islands there were numerous bush fires with devastating effects on agriculture, severe water shortages that impacted on the tourism industry and other social effects. It is evident that there was inadequate preparation for the event. Greater planning and investment are therefore required to reduce future impacts.
加勒比地区干旱的影响不像世界其他一些地区那样显著，但它也未能幸免干旱的侵袭。由于2009/2010年长期干旱的影响，加勒比共同体（加共体）第21次闭会期间会议的议程特别关注了干旱问题。本文回顾了五个加共体国家应对干旱灾害的管理框架。本文还报告了2009/2010年干旱的一些影响，特别是针对格林纳达和格林纳丁斯。在这些岛屿干旱期间，发生了多起丛林火灾，对农业造成了毁灭性影响，严重的水资源短缺影响了旅游业以及产生了其他社会影响。显然，对该事件的准备不足。因此，需要进行更多规划和投资以减少未来的影响。
