Caption – Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Samoa, Sefo Bourne 

The public need not worry about money stored in the various bank vaults, in times of natural disasters like a tsunami, even if they are located on low lying areas, according to the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Samoa (CBS), Sefo Bourne. The assurances followed the recent tsunami drill, where the scenario was based on waves sweeping into low lying areas. Bourne revealed that the CBS 5 storey building was built in the late 1980’s with natural disasters such as Tsunami’s, Earthquakes and Cyclones in mind. “It was built on New Zealand and Australian standards.” He also mentioned, all the banks should have safety precautions as a part of their business plan and operations, “CBS also has their own precautions”. The walls to the vaults are very thick and secure and are four metres above sea level, so Bourne believes most of the assets will be safe especially because the sea wall surrounding the building provides “some sort of protection”. According to Bourne the financial system has a long history of safeguarding the publics’ financial assets and there is no reason why they would not be available soon after an emergency. “There is nothing to worry about. “We all have disaster management steps in place.” Nevertheless, Bourne says the public do worry about a few things and the first is the cash holdings. Bourne says should something ever occur the cash vaults are protected as the vault doors have rubber seals and it is very difficult for water to seep through, however, he does mention that it really does depend on how strong the Tsunami is whether or not water gets through. The second aspect the general public would be worried about, explains Bourne, is the records that the bank holds. However, he says the bank is currently in discussions of possibly setting up a site out of the danger zone to store the critical records. “We always have that in mind.” Also mentioned was the fact that CBS has their own generator which stands alone so the bank will be functional if the power fails during a natural disaster. Finally, a large amount of assets, approximately SAT$250 million, is held overseas.

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written by GC, November 06, 2007

Gee, that is reassuring. I will sleep easy at night knowing that while I am being swept away and drowned by tidal floods, my pitiful savings account will survive to make Mr Sefo Bourne very happy.

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