KINGSTON, Jamaica—Children at Morris Knibb Preparatory School had a pleasant surprise awaiting TotalEnergies Jamaica’s team members, who visited the Miraflores Drive, St Andrew, school last Tuesday for a tree-planting and fire-drill exercise, involving more than 400 students.

“When I pressed the fire alarm, you could instantly hear chairs moving and teachers directing the children. They also had multiple exit points,” said Shanice Samuels, health, safety, environment and quality officer, TotalEnergies Jamaica.

Admitting that her team had a debriefing with the school’s administrators prior to the drill, Samuels said it was clear that the institution, chosen for its proximity to TotalEnergies’ Gilmore Drive service station, already had its emergency protocols in place.

“We observed the children moving with hands either above heads or behind backs, showing there was no pushing, even though they were reacting to a fire simulation. It was exciting that, at their age, they knew these things,” Samuels said.

“The school has varying emergency procedures, alarms differing between an earthquake and a fire. They told us they had different drills that they practise regularly, so we basically went there and watched,” Samuels added.

“After the drill, we only needed to give a reminder or two, such as there should be no running. Even though quick movements are required, we don’t want anybody tripping,” she reminded.

Describing TotalEnergies’ Morris Knibb Preparatory visit as “strengthening community resilience”, Samuels pointed to good corporate citizenship.

“It is TotalEnergies’ corporate responsibility to share knowledge with the community and stakeholders, especially when it comes on to safety, which does not come with a price tag but instead something we should priortise as a corporate entity.

“We went in to help the children put meaning and facts to the respective drills they were already doing. The team also played a ‘safe and not-safe’ game, which they were really good at, especially fire-safety, considering children are, at times, exposed to matches and cigarette lighters at home,” Samuels pointed out.

TotalEnergies’ tree-planting exercise, eight ornamental seedlings, which Samuels hopes will thrive to provide shade, falls in line with its environmental mandate.

The French multinational rebranded as TotalEnergies in 2021, pivoting its focus towards renewable energy sources as well as environmental awareness and responsibility, aiming to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

Complementing its community-resilience efforts, TotalEnergies engages young people through school tree-planting initiatives and supports broader environmental actions by participating in activities such as the annual International Coastal Clean-up Day and Adopt-a-Hillside initiative.

“We have always had tree-planting exercises at schools. It is good to have the children planting trees, which makes them appreciate the environment and the joy of actually experiencing growth around them,” Samuels expressed.