- Kenya Red Cross said some of the equipment they gave out included Phones, Radio calls, display screens, computers, mega phone, protective equipment and gloves.
- Each of the three counties which include Kilifi, Tana River, and Garissa will receive equipment worth Sh4 million.
Image: ALPHONCE GARI
Image: ALPHONCE GARI
The Kenya Red Cross Society has donated emergency response equipment worth Sh12 million to three coastal counties to help them manage disasters.
Each of the three counties which include Kilifi, Tana River, and Garissa will receive equipment worth Sh4 million which were funded by the European Commission through the Kenya Red Cross Society.
Kenya Red Cross handed over the equipment for Kilifi county on Sunday in a ceremony presided over by Devolution, Public Service and Disaster Management County Executive Member Prof. Gabriel Katana and his chief officer Adan Mohamed.
The county government said it had identified Kilifi North subcounty offices in Matsangoni as the area where the Emergency Operation Centre will be established.
Kelvin Kiprono manager of disaster risk reduction Kenya Red Cross Nairobi said some of the equipment they gave out included Phones, Radio calls, display screens, computers, megaphones, protective equipment, and gloves.
Speaking during the handing over ceremony Kiprono said they have been working with the county since 2018 when they came up with proposals and managed to get funding.
He said the aim of establishing the emergency operation centres was to ensure there is proper planning of disaster management so that actions such as preparedness or response are more organised.
“The mobile phones will enable residents of Kilifi to call EOC in case of fire, floods, or famine, and in that case the county and other stakeholders can activate the response,” he said.
Kiprono said the radio calls will enable response teams to communicate easily instead of relying on mobile phones only.
The protective equipment he said will be used by the response team depending on the type of disaster they will be responding to.
“It will take us two weeks to install the equipment and ensure its operating, EOC will be run by the county on behalf of the other stakeholders,” he said.
He said a team will be taken for training at Kenya Red cross headquarters in Nairobi on disaster response.
Katana said they have been preparing the EOC and were just waiting for the equipment to operationalise the centre.
He said the centre will bring together key players involved during disaster response which will ease operations.
“As you know, Kilifi sometimes get more or less rain. Sometimes there is drought, strong winds which affect buildings and even flood, that is why as a county, we partnered with Kenya Red Cross to come up with the centre,” said the executive.
He said the establishment of the centre it will enable all departments concerned to respond quickly and easily through the EOC which will be making calls to the relevant authorities.
Katana said the county government is also in the process of coming up with a disaster management policy that will guide the process.
He said they are now set to begin public participation to get views from residents before it begins to take effect.
“Very soon we will be going to the grassroots for public participation and we thank you the Kenya Red Cross for assuring us that they will support the process so as to be completed quickly,” he said.
-Edited by SKanyara