The Senate is going to investigate Puerto Rico's degree of preparedness and the agencies' contingency plans in the event of an earthquake. 

The information was confirmed by New Progressive Party Sen. Hector Martinez, who said he discussed the proposed probe with Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz. Martinez is chairman of the Public Safety Committee.

One of the main aspects of the probe would be to determine if the contingency plans take into account that an earthquake may affect daily living conditions for a long period of time.

"I do not think our people are properly educated on how to address the scope of this phenomenon that can seriously change life patterns overnight, with the probability of a long, slow recovery," the legislator said in a statement press.

For Martinez, it is imperative to know the impact that an earthquake will have on the economy as well as the physical conditions of schools, hospitals, public buildings and high rise buildings as well as the equipment available to the government to begin an early evacuation or to rescue victims.

He noted that most multi-level buildings and hotels are near the coast, which adds an additional response level in the event an earthquake causes a tsunami.

The probe will also go into the state of dams and power plants and the degree of preparation at the Aqueducts and Sewer Authority to respond to a disaster of the magnitude experienced in Haiti.

"The sister republic has suffered a cataclysm with the earthquake that devastated an incipient infrastructure. What would the effect in Puerto Rico (of an earthquake) when our urban centers are overcrowded, congested with traffic and have multi-level buildings? ", Martinez asked.

He said the probe into the operations of the Emergency Medical Corps, which has only fifty ambulances, have raised questions on how well the island can respond to a disaster.

The proposed probe will also ascertain the adequacy of the Police Department, the Corrections Administration and the National Guard public safety issues caused by natural disasters.

"Haiti has collapsed and there are more criminal than a thousand criminals in the streets. With more than 12,000 prisoners in our penal system, the probability of an earthquake in itself presents a risk to public safety that perhaps we have not evaluated seriously,” he said.