Success Stories FbF LAC 2021 Vol. 2 | Page 10

The Ecuadorian Red Cross and The Costa Rican Red Cross exchange experiences on Volcanic Ashfall Early Action Plans

ithin the framework of

the Exchanges component to strengthen the capacities of the National Societies that are part of FbF LAC, the thematic exchange between the Ecuadorian Red Cross and the Costa Rican Red Cross was promoted.

The initiative took place from August 15 to 21 in San José, Costa Rica, with the participation of Sabina Ortíz, national reduction officer, and Roger Zambrano, national risk management coordinator of the Ecuadorian Red Cross, and key personnel from the National Risk Management Directorate (DINAGER) of the Costa Rican Red Cross.

As part of the exchange's activities, Benjamin Bernard from the Geophysical Institute of Ecuador trained 25 new Volcanological Observers in the region of Alajuela.

In addition, a Simulation of the Activation of the Costa Rican Red Cross' Volcanic Ashfall Early Action Plan (EAP) was developed. The exercise happened around the Poás Volcano to evaluate the flow of information, decision making and institutional coordination proposed in the Early Action Plan.

Around 21 people participated, including staff from the Costa Rican Red Cross, evaluators from the Volcanological and Seismological Observatory of Costa Rica (OVSICORI), Ecuadorian Red Cross and the Geophysical Institute of Ecuador.

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