The Tribune

A Bahamian realtor is calling for hundreds of acres in inland New Providence to be set aside for a disaster relief and recovery headquarters serving The Bahamas and wider Caribbean.

Mario Carey, founder of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate MCR Bahamas Group, said his proposal could save lives and millions of dollars during disaster relief operations.

"Disaster relief, rebuilding and recovery have become the single largest cost that The Bahamas, and other countries and island nations in the region, face," said Mr Carey. "In some places, it has been estimated that countries will have to spend up to 30 percent of their budgets rebuilding from a single natural disaster."

With warming waters and rising seas associated with climate change creating conditions favourable to stronger storms, their aftermath is likely to impose ever-increasing costs in lives and dollars.

"We saw what happened to places like Dominica and Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. We have seen the evidence of the wrath of storms in Barbuda, Antigua, all across the Caribbean," added Mr Carey.

"There are parts of Puerto Rico that still don't have power 11 months after Hurricane Maria struck that island. Everywhere roofs were blown off, airports closed, power lines were down, fresh water a precious commodity, supply routes cut off."

The cost of rebuilding and returning to a state of normalcy are taxing every nation impacted by the 2017 hurricane season. After Hurricane Maria hit Dominica in 2017, that country's president said the nation would "need all the help it could get from the world".

Mr Carey believes that help could be as close as The Bahamas. He envisions the storage of disaster relief supplies and rebuilding tools in a cordoned off, and highly protected, mini-city in New Providence.

"The interior of Nassau has proved itself to be one of the safest places, if not the safest place to be, during a hurricane," he explained. "Coastal areas on both coasts have been hit, certain other islands in The Bahamas have been frequent targets, but the deep interior of New Providence is like a girded cage; a safe haven."

The government, Mr Carey said, owns thousands of acres, and that crown land could be the site of a massive regional complex in which all Caribbean countries wanting to participate can joint venture with The Bahamas, build a complex and rent entire blocks to nations as their storehouse.

Each participating country would pay rent to the complex, which would operate as an independent body benefiting from duty-free exemptions on relief and recovery items, but no political interference.

"Imagine if you are on an island 1,000 miles from here and nearly everything has been destroyed, but you have all the supplies you need safely stored off-site," Mr Carey explained. "You have helicopters for immediate rescue work, tractors for clean-up, generators for power, tents for temporary living quarters, lumber and nails and cement to rebuild, water and non-perishables to survive and they are all safe.

"Instead of borrowing hundreds of millions and burdening future generations with that debt, you hire ships to transport your own supplies and begin the clean-up and rebuilding. You are not losing months, or longer, as businesses can't operate, schools remain closed and life comes to a standstill. You are up and running the rebuilding as soon as the storm passes."

Mr Carey, who was awarded the first international franchise for Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, said the idea of Nassau becoming a regional disaster relief hub came to him in two ways.

"The first time I realised we needed a life line for islands - just like we have a safe house for people in crisis - was when I saw how hard it was to rebuild in Long Island, where my family has roots, after Hurricane Joaquin and then the island was hit by Irma," he explained.

"We had help getting fishing boats back in the water, thanks to organisations like the chamber and rotary and the national telethon, but that was through the good graces of well-intentioned individuals after the fact instead of planning before the storm. I want to replace luck and dependence on others' goodwill in emergency with strategy before the crisis."

The second time the thought of a joint venture regional hub came to him was when he listened to the prime minister make his budget contribution.

"The country needs new, innovative revenue sources. The regional disaster relief and recovery hub could be one an important new source of revenue," Mr Carey added.

"There are so many ancillary businesses that could be created around it and to serve it, contributing to real economic growth. You can only tax so much and then you have to really examine ways to grow the economy. If you can do that and do something worthwhile, you've got the best of all worlds."