The teamwork of some Nosara residents made it possible to develop an emergency plan in case of natural disasters such as fires, earthquakes and tsunamis, which includes direct communication between Rancho Suizo (in Pelada) and the National Emergencies Commission (CNE) in San Jose along with eight walkie talkie radio phones located at strategic points.
Thanks to the work and financial donations of Rene Spinnler, Marcel Schaerer and Hotel Giardino Tropicale, Nosara has received eight walkie talkies with batteries that last up to five days if given moderate use, as well as all the equipment necessary to properly maintain radio communication in the event of a disaster in the area. All this equipment, which also includes chargers, bases for charging the walkie talkies, coaxial cable and an 26-meter-high antenna at the “American Project” ASADA building with a coverage radius of 5 to 8 miles, was donated by the Swiss Department of Justice and Security of Basel, requested by Spinnler, who is originally from Switzerland.
Currently the people who have the walkie talkies are: Carlos Villalobos Espinoza (Red Cross), Remo Britschi (fireman), Bobbi Johnson (Nosara Civic Association), Jo Pinheiro (fireman), Ryan Bombard (fire chief), René Spinnler (contact organizer based in Rancho Suizo), Enrique and Carmen Vega (who operate the caterpillar) and Aidi Sheffield (section EE).
The evacuation plan is made, taking into account local topography, and it encompasses the area from Sube y Baja Creek to Nosara, according to Spinnler, who also pointed out that, “In case of an emergency, we have to clean the roads first.” Therefore everyone involved in the plan will inspect a different section of the roads by bicycle to see which areas need to be cleaned up.
“The first job Enrique Vega has is to clean the airport for planes to land because he has the equipment to do it,” added Spinnler, who says that the process of transporting, distributing, installing, testing and organizing all of the equipment and all of the people involved in the project took a period of two years, time well spent since “it’s important to be prepared,” according to Spinnler.
Spinnler is also working on getting a donation of 12 emergency sirens that can also be used as a microphone, and Schaerer is working on getting a donation of fire equipment.
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