The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

Bimini business owners yesterday voiced fears that residents will have insufficient food supplies and income to last for the two-week island lockdown that takes effect this coming Monday.

Percy Duncombe, Sue and Joy General Store’s general manager, said Biminites were becoming “stressed out” over possible supply shortages due to the recent bad weather preventing freight and cargo ships from docking on the island. Other businessmen, meanwhile, questioned whether residents will be able to afford the necessary supplies to last the fortnight as many have yet to receive their unemployment benefits.

“It seems as though it is going crazy right now,” Mr Duncombe said. “This is the Sue and Joy next to the administrative building. I haven’t been able to go out and check what’s going on, but I hear they are carrying on so bad up there.”

“With the weather being the way it is there hasn’t been any boat with supplies in, and if we miss boats on a weekly basis, the supplies on the island dwindle. It is ridiculous right now from what I hear. I was just getting ready to close the shop up because I was here from 9am this morning, but I hear they are handing out $100 vouchers and people are asking what can this do for them for two weeks.

“With no boat supplies in the for this week, the thing about it is we didn’t have a boat in from Nassau last week. The American freight boat was scheduled to be in today, but that has not been in from last week Thursday, so the people are slowly getting stressed out.”

Mr Duncombe also questioned the lockdown’s timing, adding: “If they are going to close the island down on Monday from 9am, and they have the regular lockdown on Saturday and Sunday over the weekend, how are the people going to do any type of banking? What kind of lines will be at the food stores when the supplies come in?

“This is too short notice. I don’t think the government is doing anything much to make the situation easy. What I understand is that they are handing out $100 vouchers at the administrator’s office, along with two juices, two eggs and a little bit of chicken? That is nothing for supplies for two weeks.

“One hundred dollar vouchers on such short notice? If this was such a problem this should have been dealt with ahead of time, instead of everybody contemplating it and then, all of a sudden, dropping it on you. Tomorrow is the last business day of the week, and Monday is the first business day of the week,” he continued.

“Bank of the Bahamas was closed for a couple of days because they needed to sanitise the bank. The lockdown is needed, but it should have been dealt with earlier, and the thing is with the weekend coming with the regular lockdown how are the people going to be able to get everything they need?”

Neal Watson, owner of Neal Watson’s Bimini Scuba Centre, said the two-week lockdown would not impact his operation given that it relies on the still-shuttered tourism economy. “We are already locked down,” he added. “Who this really affects is not me as the business owner; it really affects the guys. Nobody can work, and no one has gotten their National Insurance Board (NIB) [benefits] yet.

“All of my employees that applied for NIB, none of them have gotten it yet, and all of their applications have been in. The guys that are still working, just a little bit, we’re just trying to find stuff for them to work so they can have a little bit of money. They won’t be able to work now and that’s who it really affects, the employees.

“The business itself is not generating any money until the country opens back up regardless. We can’t generate any income any way. The business itself isn’t any more adversely affected than we already have been affected by this current situation of the country being closed.”

Mr Watson said he could not understand how the government can impose a two-week lockdown if persons have not received the NIB unemployment benefits that will give them the necessary income to purchase essential supplies.

“It really doesn’t make any sense how you could do that,” he added. “It’s not making any sense to me, and it seems to me like a knee-jerk reaction. But maybe there has been some thought into it.

“The next major issue is the mail boats. They are having gale force winds for the weather today, so I don’t see how the boat can sail. They were supposed to come in yesterday and they couldn’t come due to the weather, so I don’t think they are going to come today.

“The mail boat hasn’t been here in over a week-and-a-half, and people don’t have supplies right now and it is not like there is groceries to buy. They had better really, really make sure the mail boat comes and people do have ample time to shop or else there will be hell raised.”

Edward Reckley, the Bimini Chamber of Commerce’s president, who earlier this week told Tribune Business he backed a two-week lockdown to prevent the further spread of COVID-19, said of the government’s action: “My initial reaction is basically making sure that all of the necessary things are there for the residents on the island in terms of the food distribution and the water distribution, and everything that needs to be for the people.

“That really is my only concern in the matter at this time. The mail boat is on its way now. They left yesterday and they should be there by today. I didn’t get the time he left, but he did send me a text that he has left and is on his way. This is the Captain Emmett (Emmett Munroe, captain of the Sherice M).”

Mr Reckley, who is currently in New Providence, added: “I was waiting on my vice-president to call me back to inform me of what’s happening now. The mail boat is just going there, the G &G (G & G Shipping) is on its way there also, so as far as having enough supplies for that time I feel the stores will have enough supplies.

“But, at the same time, too, because the island only survives by tourism, the government has to play a major role and they are also saying they are going to assist the public in Bimini as well.” The government has identified Bimini as a COVID-19 “hot spot”.