Turks & Caicos Islands Government is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Rikardia Pardo to the post of Deputy Director within the Department of Disaster Management and Emergencies (DDME).
Ms. Pardo joined the DDME team in November 2012 as the Hazard Mitigation Officer with responsibility for the administration of the Department’s Mitigation & Planning Programme; which involves analyzing hazard data utilizing GIS software, developing hazard maps for the implementation of national pre-disaster planning and prevention measures, and recommending mitigation measures to support sustainable development and planning in the Territory.
During this time she also played a key role in the development, maintenance and implementation of internal disaster plans and standard operating procedures (SOP) to be used in response to disasters/emergencies; spearheaded the coordination of trainings and emergency exercises (such as the Annual Regional Caribe Wave/Latex Exercises) to facilitate capacity building; assist in the functioning of the National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC); and on occasions assumed responsibility for the department operations during to absence of senior officers.
During the period of October 2015 to March 2016, she acted in the post of Deputy Director for the Department where she assisted the Director with the oversight and management of the Department; with primary responsibility for the Grand Turk DDME branch.
Ms. Pardo holds a Masters’ of Science (Distinction) from the University of Bristol, United Kingdom, in Water & Environmental Management and a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Environmental Science from the University of Manchester. Since her employment with the DDME, Ms. Pardo has obtained certification in a number of disaster related areas such as: Critical Incident Management, Damage Assessment & Needs Analysis (DANA), Emergency Operations Management, National Intervention Team (NIT), Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), and Mass Casualty Management. She has also obtained a Certificate in International Disaster Management from Bournemouth University.
Ms. Pardo stated; “It is truly an honour to be selected and appointed as the Deputy Director of DDME. Having worked in the department for almost four years as the Hazard Mitigation Officer, I have a clear understanding of the needs of the department and more specifically how they pertain to benefitting the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) as it relates to disaster management and preparedness.
“As we are a multi-island territory, a sustainable comprehensive approach towards disaster management in an effort to build disaster resilience throughout these islands is a necessity. My appointment provides a great opportunity to further contribute to the department’s efforts, ensuring that TCI develops a sustainable culture of Comprehensive Disaster Management. As well as, improving and building stronger relationships with other government services, private sector entities and community members in order to collaborate in the continuous team effort to strengthen disaster resilience.
“Our DDME team remains dedicated, passionate and engaged as ever – working long hours, and going the extra mile. I am proud to work with such dedicated professionals and thankful to have been given the opportunity.”
Deputy Governor, Anya Williams expressed how pleased she was to congratulate Ms. Pardo on her recent promotion to the role of Deputy Director of DDME. She commented; “This as you know is a very critical role to not only the department and government, but also the country at large as the responsibilities of the Department of Disaster Management and Emergencies is vital to the country.
“Ms. Pardo possesses numerous academic qualifications which certainly qualify her for this role and has throughout her tenure in TCIG attended various training and other certification programs which has helped to further expand on her knowledge and understanding in this area. In interacting with her over the years I have found her to be quite a great resource to the department and I am certain that she will do an excellent job in her new capacity as the Deputy Director of DDME.
“To this end I would like to once again congratulate her on her latest achievement and would like to wish both her and the department all the best, particularly upon approaching this new hurricane season, which we hope will have little to no impact on the Turks and Caicos Islands.”