The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

OFFICIALS in Crooked Island and San Salvador, two of the islands ravaged by Hurricane Joaquin, yesterday revealed that restoration efforts are nearing an end.

Crooked Island and Long Cay Administrator Francita Neely detailed the state of repairs in Crooked Island in a telephone interview with The Tribune.

According to Ms Neely, repairs there were now primarily focused on new home construction efforts. All minor to mid-level repairs were now complete, she said.

In the wake of Hurricane Joaquin Prime Minister Perry Christie had estimated that 50 homes in Crooked Island required some degree of repairs.

The Department of Housing are currently finalising the construction of four new homes – two in Cabbage Hill, one in Johnny Hill and the other in Cripple Hill.

In the days following the passage of Joaquin, there were reports that sections of Crooked Island had been condemned.

Those reports came after 46 residents had to be evacuated from the island.

The group, inclusive of women and small children were flown to New Providence to receive medical attention after receiving minor cuts and bruises during the storm.

Police Commissioner Ellison Greenslade at that time claimed that if the evacuations hadn’t taken place, many of the residents would have had to either sleep outside, in flooded cars, or in puddles of water.

Crooked Island at that time was referred to as a “war-torn area”, with a large percentage of the island’s population fleeing the island in the days that followed the storm.

When The Tribune arrived at Crooked Island, scores of residents had just been brought by helicopter from Landrail Point and surrounding settlements – which were completely inaccessible because of debris and flooding – to the Colonel Hill airport.

Once at the airport, the group was flown to Nassau.

An October 6 Tribune report described the scene as “sombre”, stating that children clung to their mothers and others sat in disbelief that all of their possessions were completely lost because of Joaquin’s strong winds and storm surges.

Reflecting on the storm, Ms Neely yesterday insisted that “the heart” of Crooked Island had not been tarnished.

She said many of the residents that left had now return, many of whom were “back to life as usual”.

“There hasn’t been a decrease in the population here,” she said. “It was extremely rough in the moment, but in the months that followed we worked. There was a lot of hard work. A lot of things we had to get corrected and now we are at a place where things are starting to feel the way it did before Joaquin.”

The infrastructure of Crooked Island was also damaged considerably.

The island’s airport received structural, interior and roof damage. It also acted as a makeshift command centre for operations on the island following the storm.

Many of the roadways were rendered impassable.

The island’s clinic was transformed into a shelter for residents, many of whom stayed there for an extended period after the storm.

Ms Neely noted that all of those issues have been addressed and are now operating at peak capacity.

Currently, officials on the island are working to conclude civic plans for the upcoming 2016 storm season.

Community personnel responsible for preparedness efforts are said to be meeting and communicating on the way forward for Crooked Island.

The next meeting is scheduled for tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the islands of San Salvador and Rum Cay are also said to be finalising repair efforts.

Prime Minister Perry Christie estimated that roughly 227 houses in San Salvador and 23 in Rum Cay received some degree of damage.

When contacted by The Tribune for comment, San Salvador and Rum Cay administrator Gilbert Kemp referred all questions to NEMA’s home repair consultant Paul Bain.

Mr Bain indicated that efforts on the islands were 70 per cent completed.

To date, some 90 homes have been repaired in San Salvador and 15 in Rum Cay.

Four homes in San Salvador were to be completely reconstructed.

These figures only referred to homes being repaired and constructed through government programmes and initiatives, not those repaired through private sector efforts.

Hurricane Joaquin ravaged the central and southern Bahamas on October 1 and 2, destroying homes and buildings and causing flooding in many areas.

San Salvador, Rum Cay and Crooked Island were three of the five major islands devastated during the passage of Joaquin last October.

It was initially estimated that roughly 836 homes were completely wiped out by the storm, however, that figure was later adjusted to reflect the number of homes damaged by the storm.

The National Recovery and Reconstruction Unit (NRRU) was formed in late November and made responsible for the construction of some 60 new homes throughout the southern Bahamas.