The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

ALMOST three months since hurricane Sandy ravished the country, Prime Minister Perry Christie admitted that people have not been satisfied with the government’s level of assistance to those seriously affected.

He said the government was working to “get on top of” several calls for aid that have up to this point not been given adequate attention.

Mr Christie said: “The feedback is that some people are disappointed and they want quicker more effective action. It’s a matter that I am dealing with now because I had complaints sent to me and we are going to try to get on top of that now.”

About two weeks after Hurricane Sandy struck, Mr Christie signed and set in motion exigency orders particularly for persons on the Family Islands to be eligible for duty free purchases.

Islands including Long Island, Abaco, Grand Bahama, Cat Island, and Eleuthera, which were hard hit by the storm, were included in the order.

Local businesses were also able to ask the government for rebates on certain goods.

And although persons on Grand Bahama are still struggling to rebound after the storm, its Minister Michael Darville said persons have made an appeal to have exigency orders extended.

He said: “The residents in Queen’s Cove (experienced) excessive flooding damage and the orders by the Ministry of Finance are already in swing. What is happening, because of the economic situation in Grand Bahama we are finding that some people are coming back requesting additional time.

“That is something that I am going to discuss with the Prime Minister and the Minister of State for Finance to see how we could assist them.

“One of the things of concern is the unemployment situation and the need for assistance for repairs. We are working diligently to find assistance and in short order we would definitely have a plan in place for building repairs.”

The category two storm pummelled the Bahamas for three days in October, resulting in two dead, one injured and about 488 persons fleeing to shelters. Winds were up to 80mph and rainfall measured six to 12 inches.

In New Providence, sea surges caused flooding along the coast line from Junkanoo Beach to the Caves which deposited large quantities of sand on the roadways and sections of the road either caved in or were washed out.