Coast Guard Helps with Distribution of Hurricane Relief Supplies

The time-consuming recovery efforts are well underway in the ravaged areas of Belize, in the aftermath of Hurricane Lisa. An integral part of those efforts is the Belize Coast Guard, whose members have been helping to clean up and distribute food packages to the displaced. Today, Commandant of the Belize Coast Guard, Rear Admiral Elton Bennett explained that NEMO asked them to help.

Elton Bennett

Rear Admiral Elton Bennett, Commandant, Belize Coast Guard

“We were called out by NEMO, a directive sent out by the Ministry of Defense that the concentration of forces must be within Belize City. Immediately we marshaled all personnel who were available to work and within twenty-four hours we descended on Belize City in numbers. We started off twenty-four hours after the all-clear was given in Belize City with a small number and then we increased. We started off with a small EOC team that assisted with damage assessments. Thereafter we provided personnel from the ground to work with the clean-up effort and the distribution of relief supplies. So what started off as initially an understanding and an assessment of what was going on in Belize City quickly translated into personnel working relief supplies and cleaning up Belize City. So throughout the weekend, we had on an average day, a hundred and fifty personnel doing a series of jobs in Belize City. That effort expanded into Ladyville, which reported that they also received some serious damages and required some military support as well. So we we’re doing Belize City, and we spread out into Ladyville as well and we’re all the way in the Belize River Valley into Lemonal. We’re doing Ladyville, Hattieville, Freetown Sibun area providing support to all of those communities that are affected.”