Minister of Home Affairs and Information Gregory Nicholls is urging Barbadians not to wait until the last minute to prepare for the hurricane season.
He made the appeal during a church service at St James Parish Church yesterday to mark the official opening of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season which starts today.
Nicholls said the theme, Operation: Act before Impact, spoke directly to the need for Barbadians to be prepared, united and proactive.
“We cannot control the storms but we can control how ready we are to face them,” he said.
He noted that the Government had been working with key stakeholders, including the Department of Emergency Management (DEM) to strengthen national preparedness and coordination among response agencies.
“We have been reviewing our emergency protocols, assessing shelter readiness, and working closely with partners across private and public sectors,” Nicholls said.
He added that meetings with stakeholders began as early as March to assess the country’s level of preparedness under the National Emergency Management system and identified areas requiring additional support.
While highlighting Government’s efforts, he stressed that national resilience began with individual responsibility.
The minister urged residents to secure their homes, clear drains, trim overhanging branches and ensure they have essential emergency supplies well before any threat develops.
He also reminded Barbadians that hurricanes are not the only hazards facing the island.
Pointing to the recent seismic activity in the region, Sahara dust and influxes of sargassum seaweed, the minister warned that the country must remain vigilant throughout the season.
“We do not have to experience a hurricane to be severely impacted,” he said.
He further called on citizens to look out for the vulnerable members of their communities including the elderly, children and those living alone.
“We need to ensure that we care for our children, our elderly citizens and those living alone. It means that we reach out to the vulnerable families within our communities and those who may not have the means to fully prepare for their home.
“We need to return Barbados to the days of being a caring society so that our actions in the church, in the communities, at school, at work, wherever we go, reflect that spirit of care that can be tested in difficult times,” Nicholls said.
Drawing parallels between Christian faith and disaster readiness, Reverend Canon Beverley Sealy-Knight reminded that storms are sometimes economic, telling the congregants that preparedness is not rooted in fear but wisdom. She said faith should inspire action, noting that “faith is not denial, faith is courage joined with preparation”.
Prepare wisely
“That is why agencies like the Department of Emergency Management matter so much. They cannot stop hurricanes, that would be a good thing if you had the power to, but they help us prepare wisely, they coordinate responses, they encourage readiness before panic arrives, and there is something deeply spiritual in preparation,” the priest said, while referencing the biblical Noah and Joseph.
Sealy-Knight said that sometimes Christians made the mistake of believing faith meant pretending danger did not exist, but Trinity Sunday taught differently.
“We are taught that the Father gives wisdom . . . the Son enters suffering – he’s with us in the storm – and the Spirit empowers action. So faith is not denial. Faith is courage joined with preparation and perhaps that is one of the great lessons Barbados must remember in this season, because storms today are not only meteorological. Sometimes storms are economic, some are emotional, and some are social. Some are hidden inside homes and hearts, and increasingly climate change is making all of these storms heavier,” she said.
Sealy-Knight emphasised that resilience depended on communities caring for one another. (AJ)
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