The US ambassador in Dhaka Dan Mozena extolled Bangladeshis for their climate resilience on Friday. “Bangladeshis truly are tough, resilient, creative people…people who stand tough against the ravages of nature,” he said inaugurating a coastal crisis management centre at Pagla, on the outskirts of capital Dhaka.He said once monster storms killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people, “but no more”.
“Bangladesh now protects and defends its wonderful people against these killer cyclones”.
He said the Coastal Crisis Management Centre that he opened on Friday was “the latest in Bangladesh’s defenses against cyclones and tidal surges”.
In partnership with Bangladesh, he said, America was building 30 of these Coastal Crisis Management Centres along the country’s coastal areas from Teknaf to Satkhira.
“Each of the centers will protect more than 1,500 people when the next cyclone hits”.
The centres would be permanently manned by the Bangladesh Coast Guard and once a storm hits, they will be able to “communicate with Dhaka to call for help, as needed”.
“First responders from the Ministry of Home Affairs will then respond first to those areas most in need, thus saving countless lives.”
The Bangladesh Coast Guard, he said, was shouldering the heavy responsibility of manning these Centres around the clock.
They will also use those centres to monitoring the country’s waters and sea lanes.
The ambassador said America was helping to build and equip these Coastal Crisis Management Centrs at a cost of nearly $600,000 each.
“I am proud of America’s partnership with Bangladesh to help the nation cope with horrific cyclones and tidal surges,” he said, applauding the government’s “steadfast commitment” to coping with disaster.
In addition to the 30 Coastal Crisis Management centres, he said, America was helping to build another 100 multi-purpose cyclone shelters that would function as schools or community centres during good weather.
“These 130 new shelters are in addition to the 547 that our partnership with Bangladesh has already built or rebuilt,” he said.
Director General of Bangladesh Coast Guard Rear Admiral Kazi Sarwar Hossain and Commander of the US Army Corps of Engineers’ Pacific Ocean Division Brigadier General Richard Stevens were also present among others at the inauguration.-bdnews24.com
