The Canadian Press
The Canadian government and aid agencies were setting the wheels in motion Sunday to come to the aid of Caribbean islands who suffered damage by Hurricane Irma.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan tweeted Sunday evening that a team was being sent to determine how Canada can provide humanitarian assistance to the region.
Among the tools that the government can use is its Disaster Assistance Response Team, made up of members of the military and civilians from Global Affairs Canada. The DART can go to anywhere in the world on short notice to provide humanitarian assistance.
Meantime a Toronto-based aid organization said it sent four people to storm-battered St. Maarten to deliver supplies to those affected by Irma.
Rahul Singh, executive director of Global Medic, says the agency’s volunteers headed to the Caribbean country on a Sunwing rescue flight.
“Everyone’s trying to get out of the one place that we’re getting into,” he said.
St. Maarten, located on the Dutch side of an island divided between French and Dutch control, was devastated by the hurricane. An estimated 70 per cent of the homes were damaged or destroyed by Irma and four people have died, according to the Dutch government.
There was concern that hurricane Jose could hit the island Saturday night, but the Netherlands said the island was spared further damage because the storm passed farther from shore than expected.
Sunwing said its rescue flight left from Toronto on Sunday morning, and will drop off one tonne of humanitarian aid supplies, along with the Global Medic volunteers.
The Canadian airline said the flight will be picking up Canadians, Americans and Europeans stuck on the island.
Singh said his team of volunteers, which includes a paramedic, a firefighter and a pilot, will distribute hygiene kits and water purification kits, along with water purification units that will be used in hospitals.
“Our getting in could make the world of difference to the patients in that hospital with no clean water, to those 1,700 folks that are going to get aid, and to the overall emergency system,” he said.
On top of that, Singh said, they brought enough water purification tablets to purify a million litres of water.
“People have some pretty significant needs down there, and we’re racing against time to meet them,” Singh said.
He said the St. Maarten government has also asked that his team use drones to gather “aerial imaging and comprehensive mapping” of the damage.
More than 9,000 Canadians have registered with the Registration of Canadians Abroad Service in the region, Global Affairs said Sunday, but added that the number only provides an estimate since registration is voluntary. Out of those registered in the area, 296 Canadian citizens have requested assistance.
“Our thoughts are with all those affected, both Canadians abroad and their families at home,” spokeswoman Natasha Nystrom said in a statement. “During this difficult time, the Government of Canada is making every possible effort to assist Canadian citizens affected by hurricane Irma and those who may be affected by hurricane Jose.”
She said Canada’s diplomatic missions are working with local authorities, airlines and tour operators to further help affected Canadians.
Canada is also working with international partners such as the U.S., United Kingdom, Australia, France and the Netherlands to information and co-ordinate our efforts, she added.
Showing posts with label Disaster Assistance Response Team. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Disaster Assistance Response Team. Show all posts
Monday, September 11, 2017
Saturday, October 8, 2016
CAF Disaster Assessment Team sent to Haiti: DART on Standby
By: David Pugliese, The Ottawa Citizen
The Canadian government has sent a Canadian Disaster Assessment Team (CDAT) to Haiti and put aside up to $3 million as an initial humanitarian response for those in Haiti and other countries in the region affected by Hurricane Matthew.
“The CDAT will rapidly assess the situation, which is a critical step in ensuring that a Canadian response to the hurricane is coordinated, evidence-based and tailored to the needs on the ground,” the government stated in a news release. Canada is also supporting the United Nations disaster assessment teams in Jamaica and Haiti, who are still examining the situation and assisting local authorities.
Canadian military sources say the Disaster Assistance Response Team is getting ready to move out when they get the word.
Here are more details from the government news statement:
On October 4, 2016, Hurricane Matthew tore through Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba and the Dominican Republic.
Over 1.24 million people are estimated to have been affected by Hurricane Matthew in Haiti.
Haiti was the hardest-hit country and requires attention in at least 11 communities around the Grand’Anse, Nippes and Sud areas, where there has been coastal flooding.
The role of the CDAT is to meet with local and international representatives to assess the needs on the ground and to identify potential follow-up response options for the Government of Canada.
The CDAT comprises three experts from Global Affairs Canada and three officers from the Canadian Armed Forces, including the Disaster Assistance Response Team Commander.
The Canadian government has sent a Canadian Disaster Assessment Team (CDAT) to Haiti and put aside up to $3 million as an initial humanitarian response for those in Haiti and other countries in the region affected by Hurricane Matthew.
“The CDAT will rapidly assess the situation, which is a critical step in ensuring that a Canadian response to the hurricane is coordinated, evidence-based and tailored to the needs on the ground,” the government stated in a news release. Canada is also supporting the United Nations disaster assessment teams in Jamaica and Haiti, who are still examining the situation and assisting local authorities.
Canadian military sources say the Disaster Assistance Response Team is getting ready to move out when they get the word.
Here are more details from the government news statement:
On October 4, 2016, Hurricane Matthew tore through Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba and the Dominican Republic.
Over 1.24 million people are estimated to have been affected by Hurricane Matthew in Haiti.
Haiti was the hardest-hit country and requires attention in at least 11 communities around the Grand’Anse, Nippes and Sud areas, where there has been coastal flooding.
The role of the CDAT is to meet with local and international representatives to assess the needs on the ground and to identify potential follow-up response options for the Government of Canada.
The CDAT comprises three experts from Global Affairs Canada and three officers from the Canadian Armed Forces, including the Disaster Assistance Response Team Commander.
Monday, June 20, 2016
US Official: CAF Needs to Examine Roles for Future Disaster Aid
By Elliot Ferguson
The Whig
Canada and the United States may need to be willing to re-examine the role of the military in their societies as part of the preparations to deal with major natural disasters, says an American military expert.
Prof. Bert Tussing, director of the Homeland Defense and Security Issues Group at the U.S. Army War College, said preparations need to be made to respond to a "catastrophic incident" that would cause large numbers of deaths and injuries and destroy infrastructure over a large geographic area.
"You want to plan and prepare for the worst and pray that the worst never happens," Tussing said while addressing the 11th annual Kingston Conference on International Security at the Residence Inn Kingston Water's Edge.
Tussing said the role of the armed forces in times of natural disaster is to support civilian agencies in their response, not assume control.
In recent cases in the United States where the military was called in -- after the 1992 Los Angeles earthquake and in 2005 after hurricane Katrina -- the operations were short and the military withdrew quickly when its help was no longer needed, Tussing said.
Tussing used the New Madrid earthquakes of 1811 and 1812 as an example of a natural disaster that could threaten the stability of the country.
Three earthquakes in late 1811 and early 1812 -- all registering more than 7.3 on the Richter scale -- caused damage across 600,000 square kilometres and temporarily reversed the flow of the Mississippi River.
Rebuilding after that disaster took several months, at a time when there was little infrastructure.
Tussing said a similar earthquake now would cause widespread devastation. He added that it would take about 18 months to restore critical services, such as electricity and water.
In that time, local law enforcement agencies would be hard-pressed to maintain social order and it may fall to the armed forces to keep society together.
Tussing said governments need to put in place plans that give the military and civilian agencies clear roles during times of widespread and enduring disaster.
"It's time for us to plan now," he said.
This year's conference examines how militaries change and adapt to new situations during war and peace.
Conference participants looked at the "grey zone" between war and peace populated by non-governmental organizations, private corporations armed groups and states.
"It is hard to grasp, define, put borders and boundaries around it," said Maj.-Gen. Jean-Marc Lanthier, Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre.
"If we define the problem too narrowly, we will miss the solutions because the complexity of the problem makes it necessary to analyze it in the broadest sense."
This year's conference was meant to bring together military, academic, private sector and non-governmental organizations to discuss different issues.
Joining Tussing on the first discussion panel on Tuesday morning were Andrew Carswell from the International Committee of the Red Cross, Almero Retief from the mining company Rio Tinto, and Diego Ruiz-Palmer, an economics and security adviser to the NATO aecretary general.
"As an academic doing security and defence research, I really cherish those opportunities to have members of the armed forces, people from government and even the private sector react to the kind of research I am doing," said Prof. Stefanie von Hlatky of the Centre for International and Defence Policy at Queen's University.
"It usually takes the discussion in unexpected places."
The Whig
Canada and the United States may need to be willing to re-examine the role of the military in their societies as part of the preparations to deal with major natural disasters, says an American military expert.
Prof. Bert Tussing, director of the Homeland Defense and Security Issues Group at the U.S. Army War College, said preparations need to be made to respond to a "catastrophic incident" that would cause large numbers of deaths and injuries and destroy infrastructure over a large geographic area.
"You want to plan and prepare for the worst and pray that the worst never happens," Tussing said while addressing the 11th annual Kingston Conference on International Security at the Residence Inn Kingston Water's Edge.
Tussing said the role of the armed forces in times of natural disaster is to support civilian agencies in their response, not assume control.
In recent cases in the United States where the military was called in -- after the 1992 Los Angeles earthquake and in 2005 after hurricane Katrina -- the operations were short and the military withdrew quickly when its help was no longer needed, Tussing said.
Tussing used the New Madrid earthquakes of 1811 and 1812 as an example of a natural disaster that could threaten the stability of the country.
Three earthquakes in late 1811 and early 1812 -- all registering more than 7.3 on the Richter scale -- caused damage across 600,000 square kilometres and temporarily reversed the flow of the Mississippi River.
Rebuilding after that disaster took several months, at a time when there was little infrastructure.
Tussing said a similar earthquake now would cause widespread devastation. He added that it would take about 18 months to restore critical services, such as electricity and water.
In that time, local law enforcement agencies would be hard-pressed to maintain social order and it may fall to the armed forces to keep society together.
Tussing said governments need to put in place plans that give the military and civilian agencies clear roles during times of widespread and enduring disaster.
"It's time for us to plan now," he said.
This year's conference examines how militaries change and adapt to new situations during war and peace.
Conference participants looked at the "grey zone" between war and peace populated by non-governmental organizations, private corporations armed groups and states.
"It is hard to grasp, define, put borders and boundaries around it," said Maj.-Gen. Jean-Marc Lanthier, Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre.
"If we define the problem too narrowly, we will miss the solutions because the complexity of the problem makes it necessary to analyze it in the broadest sense."
This year's conference was meant to bring together military, academic, private sector and non-governmental organizations to discuss different issues.
Joining Tussing on the first discussion panel on Tuesday morning were Andrew Carswell from the International Committee of the Red Cross, Almero Retief from the mining company Rio Tinto, and Diego Ruiz-Palmer, an economics and security adviser to the NATO aecretary general.
"As an academic doing security and defence research, I really cherish those opportunities to have members of the armed forces, people from government and even the private sector react to the kind of research I am doing," said Prof. Stefanie von Hlatky of the Centre for International and Defence Policy at Queen's University.
"It usually takes the discussion in unexpected places."
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Sajjan: DART Ready if Requested by Ecuador
The Associated Press
Canada has pledged $1 million in immediate aid. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said Monday that DART, Canada's Disaster Assistance Response Team, would be ready to deploy if Ecuador wants it. The DART can only deploy if Ecuador asks for it.
Canada has pledged $1 million in immediate aid. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said Monday that DART, Canada's Disaster Assistance Response Team, would be ready to deploy if Ecuador wants it. The DART can only deploy if Ecuador asks for it.
 |
| Members of the DART combat engineering team leading a versatile vehicle engineering (VPG), opens the passage to the village of Dolkha, Sindhupalchok district in Nepal, as part of Operation RENAISSANCE 15-1, May 7, 2015. Photo: Sgt Yannick Bedard, Canadian Forces Joint Imagery Centre |
Rescuers pulled three people out alive Monday after they had been trapped for more than 32 hours in the rubble of a shopping centre that was flattened by this weekend's powerful earthquake on Ecuador's coast.
Televised images of the dramatic pre-dawn rescue in the port city of Manta gave Ecuadoreans hope that some of the dozens of people still unaccounted for might yet be found even as the death toll from Saturday's 7.8-magnitude quake rose to 413. An American and two Canadians were among those confirmed dead from the worst quake to hit Ecuador in decades.
To reach the survivors trapped between the floor and roof of the collapsed shopping center in Manta, firefighters cut a nearly 70-centimetre hole through concrete then pulled a woman out head first. A group of firefighters applauded as she emerged from the debris, disoriented, caked in dust and complaining of pain but otherwise in good health.
Japan and Ecuador earthquakes not linked, seismologists say
Later, at the same site, about 50 rescuers working with sniffer dogs, hydraulic jacks and a drill managed to free another woman and a young man. All three were rushed in ambulances to a nearby hospital. In total, eight people were rescued from the site in the past 24 hours, said Angel Moreiera, the firefighter coordinating the effort.
Authorities had hoped to save another woman whose legs were pinned by a heavy concrete slab. They were working to free her when they were forced to abandon the effort during an aftershock. When they returned the debris pile had moved and the woman was dead, Moreira said.
Christian Rivera, the head of emergency services for the capital, Quito, said that depending on the circumstances a person without serious injuries can survive up to a week under the rubble.
A woman cries in one of Ecuador's worst-hit towns, Pedernales, two days after a 7.8-magnitude quake hit the country. Rescuers and desperate families clawed through the rubble Monday to pull out survivors. (Rodrigo Buendia/AFP/Getty Images)
"After that, there's a quick decline ... and the rescuers' work becomes very difficult," he said.
Still, there are good reasons to believe more people will be found alive in the coming hours as some 450 rescue workers from Spain, Peru, Cuba, Bolivia, Venezuela, and elsewhere reached the most-affected areas along the Pacific coast. The U.S. has also offered assistance but so far President Rafael Correa, a strong critic of U.S. foreign policy in Latin America, has yet to respond publicly.
Correa, upon arriving in Manta late Sunday, said that the priority remains finding survivors.
"Our grief is very large, the tragedy is very large, but we'll find the way to move forward," the Ecuadorean leader said, adding that the quake was the worst to hit the country since a 1949 earthquake in the Andean city of Ambato that took more than 5,000 lives. "If our pain is immense, still larger is the spirit of our people."
Power outages, aftershocks
Manta, a thriving port city, was among the hardest-hit areas. Power cables were strewn across city streets as electricity in many neighbourhoods remained down. Among the many buildings that were flattened was a control tower at the airport that was home to U.S. anti-narcotics missions in South America until Correa kicked the Americans out.
Torontonians anxious for messages from family after Ecuador earthquake
As rescuers scrambled through the ruins near the epicentre, in some cases digging with their hands to look for survivors, humanitarian aid began trickling in. More than 3,000 packages of food and nearly 8,000 sleeping kits were delivered Sunday.
The quake knocked out power in many areas along the coast and some who fled to higher ground fearing a tsunami had no home to return to or feared structures still standing might collapse. The country's Geophysics Institute said it recorded 230 aftershocks as of Sunday night.
Spain's Red Cross said as many as 5,000 people may need temporary housing after the quake destroyed homes, and 100,000 may need some sort of aid.
U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby didn't identify the American who was killed but said the U.S. government will work with Ecuadorean authorities to locate and ensure the well-being of all Americans. The area of pristine beaches where the quake struck is popular with American tourists and expat retirees.
Aggravating matters were reports of looting, including in Manta, where 180 prisoners from a nearby prison escaped amid the tumult. Authorities said some 20 inmates were recaptured and others returned voluntarily.
Televised images of the dramatic pre-dawn rescue in the port city of Manta gave Ecuadoreans hope that some of the dozens of people still unaccounted for might yet be found even as the death toll from Saturday's 7.8-magnitude quake rose to 413. An American and two Canadians were among those confirmed dead from the worst quake to hit Ecuador in decades.
To reach the survivors trapped between the floor and roof of the collapsed shopping center in Manta, firefighters cut a nearly 70-centimetre hole through concrete then pulled a woman out head first. A group of firefighters applauded as she emerged from the debris, disoriented, caked in dust and complaining of pain but otherwise in good health.
Japan and Ecuador earthquakes not linked, seismologists say
Later, at the same site, about 50 rescuers working with sniffer dogs, hydraulic jacks and a drill managed to free another woman and a young man. All three were rushed in ambulances to a nearby hospital. In total, eight people were rescued from the site in the past 24 hours, said Angel Moreiera, the firefighter coordinating the effort.
Authorities had hoped to save another woman whose legs were pinned by a heavy concrete slab. They were working to free her when they were forced to abandon the effort during an aftershock. When they returned the debris pile had moved and the woman was dead, Moreira said.
Christian Rivera, the head of emergency services for the capital, Quito, said that depending on the circumstances a person without serious injuries can survive up to a week under the rubble.
A woman cries in one of Ecuador's worst-hit towns, Pedernales, two days after a 7.8-magnitude quake hit the country. Rescuers and desperate families clawed through the rubble Monday to pull out survivors. (Rodrigo Buendia/AFP/Getty Images)
"After that, there's a quick decline ... and the rescuers' work becomes very difficult," he said.
Still, there are good reasons to believe more people will be found alive in the coming hours as some 450 rescue workers from Spain, Peru, Cuba, Bolivia, Venezuela, and elsewhere reached the most-affected areas along the Pacific coast. The U.S. has also offered assistance but so far President Rafael Correa, a strong critic of U.S. foreign policy in Latin America, has yet to respond publicly.
"Our grief is very large, the tragedy is very large, but we'll find the way to move forward," the Ecuadorean leader said, adding that the quake was the worst to hit the country since a 1949 earthquake in the Andean city of Ambato that took more than 5,000 lives. "If our pain is immense, still larger is the spirit of our people."
Power outages, aftershocks
Manta, a thriving port city, was among the hardest-hit areas. Power cables were strewn across city streets as electricity in many neighbourhoods remained down. Among the many buildings that were flattened was a control tower at the airport that was home to U.S. anti-narcotics missions in South America until Correa kicked the Americans out.
Torontonians anxious for messages from family after Ecuador earthquake
As rescuers scrambled through the ruins near the epicentre, in some cases digging with their hands to look for survivors, humanitarian aid began trickling in. More than 3,000 packages of food and nearly 8,000 sleeping kits were delivered Sunday.
The quake knocked out power in many areas along the coast and some who fled to higher ground fearing a tsunami had no home to return to or feared structures still standing might collapse. The country's Geophysics Institute said it recorded 230 aftershocks as of Sunday night.
Spain's Red Cross said as many as 5,000 people may need temporary housing after the quake destroyed homes, and 100,000 may need some sort of aid.
U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby didn't identify the American who was killed but said the U.S. government will work with Ecuadorean authorities to locate and ensure the well-being of all Americans. The area of pristine beaches where the quake struck is popular with American tourists and expat retirees.
Aggravating matters were reports of looting, including in Manta, where 180 prisoners from a nearby prison escaped amid the tumult. Authorities said some 20 inmates were recaptured and others returned voluntarily.
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
1st of 2 RCAF C-17s Arrives in Kathmandu
The CAF announced today that an RCAF C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft has arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal to help with Earthquake relief. It was carrying 31 CAF members and supplies for the region. The plane will be reconfigured to take 100 passengers to New Delhi before it leaves the region.
A second RCAF C-17 will be in the region by Thursday, loaded with more supplies and personnel.
A second RCAF C-17 will be in the region by Thursday, loaded with more supplies and personnel.
 |
| RCAF C-17 Globemaster takes off from 8 Wing Trenton, heading to Kathmandu, Nepal with supplies and the DART Unit. Photo: CF Combat Camera: Cpl Dan Strohan, 8 Wing Imaging. |
Monday, April 27, 2015
UPDATED: DART en-route to Nepal With 200 CAF members
Late last night, an assessment team and elements of the CAF's Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) departed 8 Wing Trenton for Kathmandu, Nepal. The deployment is part of the Canadian Governments international support for Nepal following the devastating earth quake last week and sizeable after shocks that have continued to affect the region.
The C-17 trasnport left 8 Wing Trenton last night, and according to Maj.Gen. Dean Milner, the troops deployed as part of the DART unit are trained in urban search and rescue and medical personnel.
Travelling with the DART unit is a smaller group of soldiers and civilians, who will assess how Canada can effectively aid Nepal in the short, medium, and long term. The DART unit was last deployed in 2013 after Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. The Unit is designed to be deployed for up to 40 days until local and international humanitarian aid resources can be put in place.
Ottawa announced late Sunday that it has committed $5 million in initial relief aid.
UPDATE: April 28 2015
Ottawa announced today that 200 additional members of the CAF have been placed on standby, and will deploy to Nepal to help with the disaster relief. They will join the 40 members ( including the 18 members of the DART) who are already on the group in the coming days.
The C-17 trasnport left 8 Wing Trenton last night, and according to Maj.Gen. Dean Milner, the troops deployed as part of the DART unit are trained in urban search and rescue and medical personnel.
Travelling with the DART unit is a smaller group of soldiers and civilians, who will assess how Canada can effectively aid Nepal in the short, medium, and long term. The DART unit was last deployed in 2013 after Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. The Unit is designed to be deployed for up to 40 days until local and international humanitarian aid resources can be put in place.
Ottawa announced late Sunday that it has committed $5 million in initial relief aid.
UPDATE: April 28 2015
Ottawa announced today that 200 additional members of the CAF have been placed on standby, and will deploy to Nepal to help with the disaster relief. They will join the 40 members ( including the 18 members of the DART) who are already on the group in the coming days.
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