Thirty-two countries* will participate in a full-scale tsunami alert exercise in the Caribbean on 20 March 2013. The goal is to test the reaction capacity in countries of the Caribbean and adjacent regions, including the East Coast of Canada and the United States, the Gulf of Mexico and Bermuda. The exercise was organized under the auspices of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC).

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No.1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid( 1), and in particular Articles 2 (f), 4 and 15(2) thereof;

Having regard to Council Decision 2001/822/EC of 27 November 2001 on the association of the overseas countries and territories with the European Community ('Overseas Association Decision(2)), and in particular Articles 21 and 30 thereof:

Whereas:

(1) The Caribbean Region is exposed to

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No.1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid(2), and in particular Article 2(f) and Article 15(2) thereof,

Having regard to Council Decision 2001/822/EC of 27 November 2001 on the association of the overseas countries and territories with the European Community ('Overseas Association Decision')(3), and in particular Articles 21 and 30 thereof:

Whereas:

(1) The Caribbean is exposed to a wide

México había notificado 590 casos confirmados de infección humana por el virus, 25 de ellos mortales. La razón del aumento del n=FAmero de casos en este país refleja principalmente la realización de las pruebas en muestras recogidas con anterioridad. Los Estados Unidos de América habían notificado 226 casos humanos confirmados mediante pruebas de laboratorio, uno de ellos mortal.

También se habían notificado casos confirmados

"Early warning systems allow populations to evacuate ahead of time and take shelter in emergency and safer buildings," UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) Director Salvano Briceño stressed in a statement.

"They give Governments enough time to protect critical infrastructures such as power plants and water tanks which

At the opening of the two-day conference, Coordinator of Jeremy Collymore, said that the CARICOM Agency has provided member states over the years with model policies and programmes but

Emily's sustained winds hit 90 mph (144 kph) as it approached Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines and threatened Venezuela and the Netherlands Antilles.

At 11 p.m. EDT on Wednesday (0300 GMT on Thursday), the center of Hurricane Emily was about 45 miles (72 km) east-southeast of Grenada and moving to the west at 18 mph (29 kph), the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

At 1200 GMT, Ivan was some 735 kilometers (455 miles) southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.

Overnight, it was upgraded to a Category Five hurricane, the top level on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane intensity scale.

"Some fluctuations in strength are

UN spokesman Fred Eckhard told reporters today that a five-member UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination Team is being set up in Jamaica, one of the countries expected to bear the brunt of Hurricane Ivan as it heads west and then north across the Caribbean region in the direction of the south-eastern United States.