Santo Domingo.– The deputy for the Santo Domingo province, Domingo de León, proposed incorporating seismic education into the Dominican school curriculum as part of actions to strengthen the population’s preparedness for a potential seismic event.
De León submitted to the Chamber of Deputies a draft resolution requesting President Luis Abinader to instruct the Ministry of Education to adapt the educational curriculum and include seismic education as a subject in schools.
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The legislator maintains that training in earthquake prevention and response is fundamental to reducing the population’s vulnerability and preparing citizens to act correctly during an emergency.
Preventive seismic education
The proposal gains greater relevance in light of the National Earthquake Evacuation Drill, an exercise that seeks to test the response capacity of institutions and citizens in the event of an earthquake.
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De León also warned about the vulnerability conditions of part of the school infrastructure. In the arguments of his initiative, he points out that structural evaluations carried out in educational centers determined that 34 must be demolished because their conditions do not guarantee the necessary safety in the event of a seismic movement.
School seismic education
The deputy considered that the Dominican Republic must strengthen prevention policies, taking into account that the national territory is located on active geological faults and that the country has as a precedent the 8.1 magnitude earthquake that occurred in 1946.
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The resolution also contemplates the creation of a special commission of deputies to deliver the proposal to the President of the Republic.
