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Learning Lessons from History : French West Indies

GENERAL INFORMATION

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Implementing Institution: Université des Antilles et de la Guyane

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Head: Pascal Saffache

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Details of Institution: Address: Université des Antilles et de la Guyane, Schœlcher Campus, Geography-Planning Department, B.P. 7207, 97275 Schoelcher Cedex, Martinique, French West Indies Tel.: (+596) 596 727451 Fax: (+596) 596 611869 E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] Website: www.univ-ag.fr

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Implementation Period: The project began with the publication of two books, in 2002 and 2003, on the history of hurricanes in the French West Indies and another on the earthquakes that had occurred in French Guyana, Guadeloupe and Martinique between 1642 and 2003. Staff at the Geography-Planning Department, Université des Antilles et de la Guyane, have since begun to document all the natural disasters that have affected the French West Indies in order to better understand the protection measures currently operating on the islands. The project is ongoing. 59

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Costs: There is no specific budget for the project. Project participants contributed some US$4,300 to finance the publication of the three books and an additional US$550 for tracing the required information.

SUMMARY By observing the sea, the sky or animal behaviour, early Amerindian populations and, later, black slave communities in the Caribbean were able, to some degree, to foretell the arrival of such natural disasters as hurricanes, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. Even so, a series of natural disasters that affected the region caused many deaths in the 1700s, 1800s and early 1900s. Fortunately, more sophisticated forecasting techniques are available nowadays. In the French West Indies (which includes the island of Martinique and the Guadeloupe archipelago, the focus of this case study), technical progress has enabled considerable improvements to be made in terms of disaster prevention; these improvements have been supported by recent legislation. This case study reviews the history of natural disasters in the French West Indies and the effectiveness of legislative and other efforts to mitigate the risks of future natural disasters. Although public guidance and support seem to be optimal, some aspects of national disaster prevention plans warrant further examination. These include the available disaster prevention infrastructure of outlying areas and the need for more collective awareness with respect to risks.

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BAC KG RO U N D A N D J U S T I F I C AT I O N Natural disasters occur regularly in the Caribbean region. The first recorded hurricanes in Martinique and Guadeloupe date back to 1635 and 1655, respectively. Since then, more than 100 severe weather phenomena have whirled through or close to the two islands, causing considerable damage. For example, hurricanes and tropical storms ravaged Martinique on 4 September 1713, 13 August 1766, 11 October 1780, 18 August 1891, 13 August 1993 and 17 November 1999, causing wide-scale destruction and death. Indeed, chroniclers of the early events were so impressed by the violence of the phenomena that they did not hesitate to amplify them, often rendering them even more dramatic than the actual event (fig. 1). The first photographs taken in the aftermath of severe meteorological events were produced at the end of the nineteenth century and often confirmed

Figure 1 Etching of the effects of the hurricane that hit the French West Indies in October 1780.

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Figure 2 An early photograph of the destruction caused by a hurricane that hit Martinique in 1891. The image shows the complete destruction of the Fortde-France covered market.

Figure 3 A house in Pointe-à-Pitre blown off its foundations by the hurricane that hit Guadeloupe in 1928.

the apocalyptic visions of the official chroniclers (fig. 2).

believed that it would never be able to recover (fig. 3).

Guadeloupe has faced a similar series of storms. Hurricanes occurring on 15 August 1766, 12 September 1928, 27 September 1966, 29 August 1979 and 13 September 1989 caused much damage. However, they did not leave the same impression in the minds of the public. Every Guadeloupian would claim that Hurricane Hugo in 1989 was the most violent meteorological event of the twentieth century. In fact, the hurricane of September 1928 killed more than 1,200 people and left the island in such a dilapidated state that most reporters

Despite their violence and frequent recurrence, severe meteorological phenomena have never had the same destructive capacity as the islands’ volcanoes. In 1976, the Guadeloupe archipelago suffered from a spell of volcanic activity that caused the evacuation of the town of Basse Terre and a portion of Saint Claude. However, this did not compare to the dramatic events of 8 May 1902 when the eruption of Mount Pelée destroyed the entire city of Saint-Pierre, Martinique. According to the reports of some eyewitnesses, who were posted on hilltops

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around the city some two kilometres from the city centre, people’s clothes lit up in flames when hot ash poured out of the volcano. Scientists estimated that the air temperature reached 900 degrees centigrade in the centre of Saint-Pierre and almost 100 degrees centigrade within a radius of two to three kilometres of the city centre. This explains the fact that, in addition to the 28,000 victims recorded in the eruption, 2,000 additional deaths occurred in the following months. Although Mount Pelée erupted again in 1929, there were no victims since the region was almost deserted and the eruption was less intense. Earthquakes are also a formidable source of destruction in the region. More than 200 earthquakes of a magnitude of three or greater on the Richter scale have been recorded over the past 300 years in Martinique and Guadeloupe. The two most violent events were those of 11 January 1839 in Martinique and 8 February 1843 in Guadeloupe. The Martinique earthquake caused 400 fatalities, injured another 1,000 people and destroyed almost half of Fort-de-France, the main town. Likewise, on Guadeloupe, the major town of Pointe-à-Pitre was almost entirely destroyed. Official estimates declared that 3,000 people had been killed and 1,800 had been injured. According to historical research, this earthquake was the most violent ever recorded in the French Caribbean. Earthquakes continue to affect the region, as evidenced by a January 2005 tremor that shook all of the Iles des Saintes, a group of satellite islands of

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Guadeloupe, destroying one third of the islands’ dwellings. Fortunately, only one person was killed during this quake. Earthquakes can be accompanied by tsunamis. During the past three centuries, Martinique and Guadeloupe have been hit by more than a dozen such tidal waves: on 1 November 1755, 30 November 1823, 30 November 1824, 26 July 1837, 18 November 1867, 5 May 1901, in December 1901 and in March and April 1902, on 6 May 1902, 30 August 1902 and 24 July 1939. The effects of some of these events were negligible; therefore, good records do not exist. Even so, the two islands are vulnerable to future tsunamis owing to the presence of Kick’em Jenny, an active submerged volcano off the coast of Grenada, and the presence of an unstable mass of rock caused by a major fault in the Cumbre Vieja mountain range of La Palma, one of the Canary Islands. Many scientists believe that the western slope of the island is on the verge of collapsing into the sea. If it does so, it is predicted that a massive tsunami will sweep westwards across the Atlantic Ocean towards the Caribbean.

DESCRIPTION The project, carried out by staff of the Geography-Planning Department of the Université des Antilles et de la Guyane, can be divided into two parts. First, historical archives were searched for records of natural disasters that had affected the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique over the past four hundred years. The

Learning Lessons from History: French West Indies

team then went on to analyse recent legislation aimed at mitigating the risks posed by natural hazards as well as the awareness of the local population of these risks and their knowledge of how to react in the face of an impending disaster. Although historical records confirm the vulnerability of both Guadeloupe and Martinique to such natural disasters as earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions, surveys indicate that many people do not feel particularly threatened and hence do not possess the knowledge of how to behave in the event of an impending or current natural crisis. This situation is partly due to the fact that, for many years, the notion of risk was ignored by policy-makers for reasons of economics and tourism. Following the collapse of the sugarcane industry between 1945 and 1970, the main source of revenue of the islands, the two islands needed to find alternative sources of funds for their development. It was therefore considered better not to scare off potential investors by playing down the violence and recurrence of certain phenomena. However, since hurricanes occur in most years, many people are familiar with this hazard and hurricane preparedness practices are broadly disseminated. For several years, however, the public has been provided with little information concerning how to behave in the event of volcanic and seismic events. Indeed, now that there is almost no living memory of the earthquakes of 1939 in Martinique and 1943 in Guadeloupe, these dramatic events have been all but forgotten.

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Nevertheless, today, with increasing populations putting more and more people and buildings at risk, earthquakes are likely to be more destructive and, thanks to systematic media coverage, local government agencies have begun to increase their communications and advice to the public. An earthquake that occurred in Martinique on 8 June 1999, for example, did act as a catalyst, as the relevant authorities realized that local people were unprepared for such an event. In addition, since 1999, simulations and evacuation drills have been conducted in schools and some government offices in Martinique. Many residential areas continue to be at risk from earthquakes, however, and, in the case of a major event, the material damage and human loss would be colossal. The Trénelle district in Fort-de-France, for example, is considered a high-risk area as it is exposed to seismic hazards owing to the steep surrounding slopes and the associated threat of landslides. The French system of risk legislation is enforced in Guadeloupe and Martinique, but the system is inefficient because it was not created for, nor has it been adapted to, small tropical islands. Different cultural, environmental, political and other parameters can all affect the application of such a system. The risk of flooding has led authorities to pay particular attention to the state of rivers, their banks and their associated structures, including ditches and sewage pipes, and to ensure the efficient drainage of surface run-off. Mitigation efforts con-

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sist of removing sand, silt and other material, such as broken branches or even old car wrecks, that may prevent the free flow of water as well as calibrating water flows, damming or laying drainage systems. For example, several operations have been carried out throughout the island in ravines and rivers as well as in fishing ports on the north coast of Martinique. Potentially more serious is the risk of a tsunami. Until 26 December 2004, when a massive tsunami in the Indian Ocean killed some 300,000 people, the Caribbean public was unaware of the tsunami phenomenon even though, as mentioned earlier, there are two potential tsunami-generating sources nearby. Hence, today, it is important to review the measures being implemented by the competent authorities for informing and protecting coastal populations and to present measures that will be useful for enhancing public awareness and protection.

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In addition, Martinique has two large monitoring centres, Météo France, which is in contact with the Miami National Hurricane Center in the United States, and the Morne des Cadets observatory, which handles risks linked to volcanic and seismic phenomena. In Guadeloupe, hazard surveillance is conducted by the Institut de physique du globe de Paris, which is located in Paris, France. In addition to these research and forecasting centres, consultants are employed at other institutions such as the BRGM, which deals with the risk of landslides. Scientists at the Université des Antilles et de la Guyane study the vulnerability of the public in the face of seismic and volcanic hazards and have worked closely with government agencies in implementing hazardresponse simulations and evacuation drills that have been conducted in schools and government offices.

PA R T N E R S H I P S

REPLICABILITY

Local public institutions on both islands, such as the Regional Council, the General Council, the Prefect, the monitoring centre Météo France, mayors from different towns and Civil Security, work with scientific institutes such as the Bureau de recherche géologique et minière (BRGM) and the Université des Antilles et de la Guyane as well as independent scientists. Together, representatives of these groups form a steering committee to monitor and assess natural hazards such as landslides and seismic activity.

In order to implement disaster mitigation practices, the Government of Martinique has implemented several policies relating to land-use zoning, particularly as it concerns urban planning, and improved building practices. Regarding the building of private homes, for example, all owners must now consult a natural risk prevention plan, the Plan de prévention des risques naturels prévisibles (PPR, or Prevention Plan for Foreseeable Natural Hazards), developed in 1995. Roofs are built with sheet metal, making them stur-

Learning Lessons from History: French West Indies

dier, and houses are built facing a particular direction to withstand certain wind speeds in the event of a hurricane. All new public buildings are now built in accordance with anti-earthquake specifications. These official plans, outlined below, are based on input from geographers and other scientists and thus can be easily replicated in other countries.

P O L I C Y I M P L I C AT I O N S The risk of flooding is constantly monitored and evaluated by sensors placed along riverbanks that trigger a warning when the water level becomes critical. In addition, two wave recorders have been placed off the eastern coast of Martinique that will detect storm surges and incoming tsunamis. Thanks to this infrastructure, national and local authorities have been able to arrange operational mechanisms both upstream and downstream to mitigate against the worst risks. Although the zoning plans and local urbanization plans remain valuable tools, local institutions still rely on the PPR. Article R.111.3 of the PPR requires the State to establish a risk (or safety) perimeter for every area of land that is exposed to risk from one or more types of natural hazard. State legislation also requires that future construction meet specific safety requirements. Alongside this, zoning plans enforce land-use practices in different areas, thus helping to conserve agricultural activities, protect forests and other natural landscapes, and, it is hoped, prevent future hazards from

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either natural or anthropogenic sources. On another level, the Plans d’exposition aux risques naturels prévisibles (PERs, or Plans for Exposure to Foreseeable Natural Hazards), instituted in 1982, constitute the link between two aspects that, to date, have been separate: prevention and compensation. These plans, which are prepared by the Government, impose measures that must be carried out by businesses and private individuals before they are able to receive compensation following a natural disaster. In order to complete the PERs in a sustainable manner, hazard prevention plans (Plans de prévention des risques naturels prévisibles, or PPRs) were instituted in 1995 under the Barnier Act. The aim of the PPRs is to overcome the rapidly growing urbanization, which increases the vulnerability of the public in the face of natural disasters. The State, therefore, in collaboration with local institutions, committed itself to a prevention policy adapted to the local context. Indeed, prescriptions rather than prohibitions were favoured. Measures to be taken were also required not to worsen any current risks or to provoke any new ones. The municipalities of the islands played a key role in this process through their involvement in all phases of validating the land-use surveys. Despite this arsenal of constraining legislative and regulatory texts, environmentally friendly and hazard-free planning of expanding towns and cities is still weak. In fact, it is common to see houses built close to the shore where they are at risk from storm surges or on the flood

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plain of a river. In addition, many buildings in Martinique are not constructed to anti-seismic or anti-hurricane standards. One reason for this is that it is only since 1987 that building rules have been imposed (Rules N.V. 65) for all public contracts. These rules, for example, stipulate that buildings must be able to resist wind speeds of up to 230 kilometres per hour. However, until relevant by-laws are introduced, private construction is not subjected to such regulations. To bridge this gap, the local Direction départementale de l’équipement (DDE, or Construction and Infrastructure Bureau) disseminates information to individual builders through brochures that describe how to adapt houses to become hurricane and earthquake resistant.

I M PA C T To date, the PPR for Martinique has had little impact for two main reasons. First, each commune has its own specific PPR that relates to its particular geographical conditions and it is difficult to verify so many diverse plans. (Verification is usually carried out by the technical services of the Department of Equipment, Transport and Accommodation and the Department of Civil Protection.) Second, even when PPRs have been drawn up, town and city officials often lack the political will and/or financial resources to implement them.

LESSONS LEARNED The public’s perception of the risk of

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natural disaster varies according to the type of hazard and its recurrence. The awareness-raising process is hence differentiated, with close attention being paid to flooding and hurricanes whereas earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are ignored to such an extent that this is becoming a major concern. However, recent seismic events that shook the India/Pakistan border region of Kashmir in December 2004 and, later, the SaintesGuadeloupe archipelago in the Caribbean provoked substantial discussions concerning the correct behaviour to adopt in the case of an earthquake and the techniques available for reinforcing buildings. At present, financial aid allocated by the regional councils in Martinique is provided only to those who wish to transform their homes to meet anti-seismic standards and little, if anything, is spent on raising public awareness of how to act during an earthquake. Although the ability of the infrastructure to withstand climatic and tectonic hazards is gradually improving, it is nevertheless unfortunate that disaster prevention plans progress so slowly. For example, permits may still authorize the construction of buildings just a few metres from the sea, on unstable land or on riverbanks. In addition, at-risk farmland continues to be converted into residential zones. Determining and defining risks and forecasting and preventing natural disasters are complex issues and, at times, there are conflicts between the conclusions of scientists and the concerns of elected representatives. These conflicts

Learning Lessons from History: French West Indies

can be a source of tension that considerably slows down the implementation of mitigation measures and the process of development.

FUTURE PLANS Despite such differences between scientists and elected representatives, enormous progress has been made in terms of forecasting and disaster preparedness and prevention in the French West Indies over the past 40 years, particularly in Guadeloupe, which has an effective monitoring and prevention system for volcanic hazards and, to a lesser extent, earthquakes. Over the past 40 or so years, Guadeloupe has been affected far more than Martinique in terms of storms, hurricanes and, more recently, earthquakes. Several challenges remain, however. The most important of these is to instil into the collective conscience a culture of disaster and risk awareness while improving and adapting buildings so that they can withstand natural hazards. The last challenge, but not the least, remains convincing the decision-makers to have the political will to implement and enforce such policies.

P U B L I C AT I O N S Marc, J.V., and Saffache, P. (2005). Trois siècles de tourmente: Voyage à travers l’iconographie cyclonique des Antilles françaises (de la fin du XVIIIe siècle à la première moitié du XXe siècle). Paris: Éditions Publibook

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Universités, Collection Sciences Humaines et Sociales, Série Géographie. Mavoungo, J. and Saffache, P. (2004). La Martinique: Entre aménagement et risques sismiques, Études Caribéennes, 1:55-61. _____. (2005). Risque sismique et vulnérabilité humaine au quartier Trénelle à Fort-de-France (Martinique): Conséquences d’un aménagement non maîtrisé, Écologie et Progrès, 4:7-17. Saffache, P. (2005). The vulnerability of the island of Martinique to the risk of a tsunami, Études Caribéennes, 3:87-88. Saffache, P., Marc J.V. and Cospar, O. (2002). Les cyclones en Martinique: Quatre siècles cataclysmiques (éléments pour une prise de conscience de la vulnérabilité de l’île de la Martinique). Paris: Ibis Rouge Éditions Presses Universitaires Créoles, Collection Géographie et Aménagement des Espaces Insulaires, 197 pp. Saffache, P., Marc, J.V. and HuyghuesBelrose, V. (2003). Les cyclones en Guadeloupe: Quatre siècles cataclysmiques (éléments pour une prise de conscience de la vulnérabilité de l’archipel guadeloupéen). Paris: Ibis Rouge Éditions - Presses Universitaires Créoles, Collection Géographie et Aménagement des Espaces Insulaires, 276 pp. Saffache, P., Marc, J.V., Mavoungo J., Huyghues-Belrose, V. and Cospar, O. (2003). Tremblements de terre et raz de marée dans les Départements français d’Amérique (1643-2002): Éléments pour un aménagement raisonné et une prise de conscience de la vulnérabilité du milieu. Paris: Éditions Publibook Université, Collection Sciences Humaines et Sociales, Série Géographie, 352 pp.

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Case Study Prepared by: Jean-Valéry Marc and Pascal Saffache Address: Université des Antilles et de la Guyane, Schœlcher Campus, Geography-Planning Department, B.P. 7207, 97275 Schoelcher Cedex, Martinique, French West Indies Tel.: (+596) 596 727451 Fax: (+596) 596 611869 E-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

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