CYPRUS HAS plans in place to deal with almost any kind of natural disaster but some can be so catastrophic that a state can find it impossible to deal with on its own, Interior Minister Neoclis Sylikiotis said yesterday.
The most important aspect in any natural disaster was to avert the loss of human lives, said Sylikiotis in an interview with the Cyprus News Agency (CNA). The secondary goal was to restrict negative impact on the environment.
The minister said Cyprus agreed with the position of French President Nicolas Sarkozy to create a European rapid reaction force that could deal with such catastrophes on a regional basis in southern Europe, the Mediterranean and central Europe.
“Unfortunately, until today, some of the biggest EU member states – but also other fellow states – feel that dealing with a natural disaster should be a national issue,” Sylikiotis said.
But, he said, there were disasters that could take on broader dimensions, affecting neighbouring countries and even the whole of Europe.
Climate change is having a dramatic impact on the planet and subsequently Cyprus, Sylikiotis added.
“In Cyprus, we try to be as prepared as possible to deal with a natural disaster,” he said. “Within our powers, we seek to improve continuously by attaining better and more modern equipment, reinforcing the relevant bodies with the necessary trained human resources, but also better coordinating the implicated services.”
These efforts also include trying to embed in the public the meaning of “volunteer contribution and social solidarity”.
According to Sylikiotis, plans are already in place to deal with any kind of natural disaster, so that the relevant services can be ready to act, speedily and efficiently.
Special plans are also in place to help victims of such disasters. “For example, there are establishments ready to home victims if necessary. There are agreements for their transportation, their housing and food.”
But Sylikiotis pointed out that Civil Defence depended mainly on volunteers, which is why it has been making great efforts to reinforce the institution of volunteerism in Cyprus.
The island is also ready to deal with catastrophes in neighbouring countries, such as when the Lebanon war broke out in 2006. Within hours of news emerging of the strife, thousands of people fleeing the war zone found assistance and shelter in Cyprus, where they arrived in order to fly off to their countries.
“Back then, Cyprus became a bridge to transport humanitarian aid to the people of Lebanon,” Sylikiotis pointed out.
In the past year, Sylikiotis said the state was forced to deal with a number of natural disasters, such as the tornado that swept through Nicosia in September 2009 causing extensive damage. They have also had to deal with floods that affected mainly the Nicosia and Limassol districts last winter, and there were a large number of fires over the summer.
“In all the cases, the relevant services were immediately activated and they acted in time, which is why in the floods – for example – we didn’t mourn human victims, while we managed to rapidly restore damaged areas, and help those affected return to a normal everyday life,” said Sylikiotis. “The same happened in the areas of Nicosia that were affected by the tornado.”
Regarding the fires, the minister said he was pleased with the state’s success in maintaining its primary goals: “prevention, immediate intervention and extinguishment before (the fires) spread and take on uncontrollable dimensions”.
Referring to the increased number of fires this summer, the minister said the state had to deal with two serious problems: “A rainy winter had preceded, which was followed by an extended and especially warm summer, with unprecedented high temperatures,” he explained. “And of course, we can’t sidestep the fact that the majority of fires were the result of human negligence. We recently received information that some of the fires were the results of arson attacks. This is a very serious development and it should sound alarm bells in all of us, primarily the local communities.”
