“We must not only disasters bring us together” – President Ali

The La Soufrière explosion

… As the 3rd relief tribe to sail for St Vincent

Emergency supplies have been loaded by ship for St. Vincent and the Grenadines – the third shipment Guyana has prepared for the affected island in recent days.

At present, St. Vincent is still seeing seismic tremors generated by explosive activity at La Soufrière volcano, and thousands of residents continue to take refuge in shelters on the other side of the sprawling islandQ.
MV Lady Fazeela, who carries 275 tons of needed food supplies and other articles, will sail today for the volcano-conquered island. But first, it will deliver bottled water and 450-gallon tanks to Barbados – which has been facing the volcanic ash front.
Items sent to St Vincent match the list of necessities provided by the Government. In the local relief efforts, the Private Sector and civil society have responded to the challenge of contributing a large percentage of the aid.

President Dr Irfaan Ali was at Georgetown Wharf on Monday afternoon as supplies were packed into the ship. He cited this humanitarian relief, volunteering with the Private Sector – a commendable act.
Ali said he showed a strong commitment to social responsibility in getting necessities in the hands of St Vincentians and Barbadians. The Civil Defense and Coastguard Commission also played a key role in relieving relief.
“I think the Guyana Private Sector has shown on numerous occasions that they can respond to different challenges; that their commitment to the development of Guyana and the region as a whole is key to their success. In Caricom itself, there should be great recognition for Guyana’s Private Sector tremendous work in using resources, not the first time, not the second time. ”

The Head of State continued, “There are no barriers that can prevent us from achieving what we set out to achieve. But it is not only disasters that bring us together, to push us to work this way together. This must be part of our culture in building our country and the Caricom region. Guyana understands our responsibility to Caricom. We understand our role at Caricom. ”
Prime Ministers Gonsalves and Mia Mottley were assured of support from Guyana and in rebuilding their nations and people’s livelihoods.
On Saturday, the first ship arrived at Port Kingstown, St Vincent. Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves praised the Government and its people for efforts to help the small island republic, citing Guyana as the “main cornerstone” of the Caribbean Community.

Gonsalves noted that St. Vincent and the Grenadines is metaphorically vulnerable when considering the volcano eruptions, the COVID-19 pandemic and the upcoming hurricane season and therefore expressed gratitude for Guyana and any other country that helped.
That first consignment consisted of 350 tons of miscellaneous aid including water, water storage containers, sugar, rice, peas, chowmein, sanitisers, detergents, disinfectant, personal care items and baby supplies. A 20-foot container of water from Guyana was also sent to the island that was burned by a volcano.

Volcanic activity
Since the first explosion two Fridays ago, which covered the island in a blanket of thick smoke, there have been about 30 identifiable explosive incidents at the site.
Reports from the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Center said long-range and hybrid small-scale earthquakes began to be recorded again on Monday, at a rate similar to before the last explosive activity.
Meanwhile, one rock fall was recorded, at 01: 39h. Rocks can be produced by a growing lava dome, but this could not be confirmed without visual observations.
The Global Positioning System (GPS) continuous network has shown a change in horizontal and vertical movement since the initial recession noted immediately after the April 9 explosive phase. The network is used to track changes in the shape of the earth on the volcano and around it. As magma moves beneath the volcano, changes in pressure cause the volcano to change shape (swell / deflate).
“These changes may suggest an inward magma influx within the sub-volcanic system, however, further investigation is needed to confirm this interpretation. The volcano continues to erupt. Its pattern of seismic activity over the past few days is typical of the growth and destruction of lava domes. Explosives with associated ash, of similar size or larger, can occur with little or no warning, affecting St Vincent and neighboring islands. The volcano is at Red alert level, ”the Center said in Monday’s update.
The World Meteorological Organization also announced that sulfur dioxide emissions from the St Vincent eruptions are making their way as far as India.
This has now fueled fears of increased levels of pollution in the northern parts of the country and acid rain – caused by the reaction of SO2 with water.
According to DownToEarth.org, tensions are at higher levels in the northern parts of the country and acid rain. Sulfur dioxide reacts with water to form sulfuric acid which can come down with rainfall. (G12)