Gov’t urges Jamaicans to stop the unfold of misinformation throughout disasters

The Jamaican authorities has urged residents to stop the unfold of misinformation throughout earthquakes and different pure disasters, which negatively impression the related authorities’ capability to help these in want of assist.

The island was rocked by a 5.4 magnitude earthquake early this morning, with the tremor’s epicenter about 2 miles (4 kilometers) west-northwest of Hope Bay in northeastern Jamaica, based on the U.S. Geological Survey. It occurred at a shallow depth of 6 miles (10 kilometers).

No deaths have been reported and there was no main structural harm.

Nevertheless, a number of communities and public buildings on the jap facet of the island reported minor infrastructure harm, based on Stewart Beckford, the Commissioner of the Jamaica Fireplace Brigade.

Throughout a press convention this night, Beckford famous that Fireplace Brigade groups visited a number of communities in Kingston and surrounding areas to conduct assessments of broken buildings. However regardless of the gravity of the state of affairs, Beckford stated the brigade was nonetheless receiving prank calls from residents regarding the earthquake.

“With all of this, we nonetheless have Jamaicans who’re making prank calls to the hearth brigade regarding the earthquake. We’d have had studies of buildings collapsing on Half Means Tree Highway, and after we turned up, it was false, and quite a few different calls across the company space that turned out to be pranks,” Beckford stated.

“I need to use this medium to ask the members of the general public to please desist from the follow of constructing prank calls. What it does is tie up assets which are wanted elsewhere and makes our job that rather more troublesome,” he urged.

These sentiments have been echoed by Prime Minister Andrew Holness who stated the unfold of misinformation, particularly throughout occasions of disaster and catastrophe, negatively impacts Jamaicans who really need assistance.

“Misinformation is certainly part of our society. Some folks might imagine it’s humorous, it’s a prank, some folks might imagine it’s leisure, but it surely has an actual impression on the way it misdirects our assets,” Holness stated.

“Assets that would have been used to correctly determine and correctly assess and provides service to people who find themselves in want find yourself being misdirected as a result of we are able to’t take an opportunity as soon as somebody requires assist,” the Prime Minister added.

Aftermath of the earthquake

A number of aftershocks have been reported for the reason that 5.6 tremor this morning, together with one a number of minutes previous to the publishing of this text. The Earthquake Unit on the College of the West Indies stated there have been over 20 aftershocks.

The most important tremor resulted in meals, wine bottles, and different gadgets tumbling off the cabinets in grocery shops, and lots of residential and public buildings have reported structural harm.

The College of the West Indies and the New Kingston Procuring Heart are among the many public buildings broken. Mayor of Kingston Delroy Williams additionally famous that a number of buildings in Downtown, Kingston, have been broken.

Many companies within the company space, together with banks, supermarkets, and tax places of work, closed operations for the rest of the day. A number of faculties in jap Jamaica additionally dismissed early.

The Kingston Public Hospital reported a large enhance in sufferers affected by bronchial asthma assaults and panic assaults. Different emergency circumstances additionally confirmed up on the hospital.

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