Reflecting on Dean’s passage

People in the Caribbean are breathing a sigh of relief after the recent passage of hurricane Dean. In fact we can only say this about Dominica, St.Lucia, Martinique, Jamaica and Belize to the extent that their encounter with the monster hurricane was not as formidable as many had feared. But even with this feeling of relief we have to remember that within those countries some communities, especially the sea side ones suffered serious damage and lives were lost.{{more}} Residents in some sections of Jamaica, for instance, claim that their experience with Dean was much worse than with Ivan or even Gilbert.

Every year in the Caribbean we come face to face with the fact that we are extremely vulnerable and that in a matter of hours all of our efforts at development could be easily erased. This is especially so for those countries in whose economic life bananas still play a big though declining role. Even when there is no major physical damage bananas are likely to take a beating. And we have already heard about damage to the banana industry during this brief encounter with Dean. What makes this so alarming is that it is an annual affair. It would appear however that based on past experiences in Jamaica and Grenada some of their people treated this annual visitation much more seriously than they used to. In Jamaica one of the things that seemed to have stood out was the quick response by its people in preparing for the storm and responding to the emergency alerts. Building codes put into place in recent years after their earlier encounters would also have played a role in limiting damage.

As Dean passed through the eastern Caribbean it was still undeveloped and a small hurricane. It reached Jamaica as a category 4 Hurricane and the north of Belize as a category 5 Hurricane. As if guided by some mysterious hand it passed between Martinique and St. Lucia and its eye south of Jamaica when it seemed set on course to hurl its full force on that country. Among those killed, was a 25 year old lady and her 7 year old son in Dominica who perished when their house was swept away by a mud slide. Really! an unfortunate way for two young people to go. The young lady was a student of the University of the West Indies, participating in its Distance Education programme. Seriously affected, particularly in Jamaica were some coastal communities where residents reported waves as high as 10 feet. In the Corozal area in northern Belize crops particularly sugar cane and papaya were destroyed, with serious implications for the economy in that area. There was some damage also to housing with roofs having been blown off and some houses destroyed.

An attack on any Caribbean community is really an attack on all since we share so much in common and it brings home to us the fact that we could have met the same fate, since we have the same vulnerability to this force of nature. Resources which could have gone into the development of the region then have to be put aside for rebuilding purposes and relief generally. Remarkably Grenada was able to make a quick recovery after the devastation of Ivan, but it becomes even more difficult if more than one country in the region is hit. We must also be concerned that we are still virtually at the beginning of the hurricane season since September and October seem to represent the peak of the season. When we follow the predictions made by the Hurricane experts we have to thread very carefully and ensure that emergency measures are fully in place. While the people in countries that have recently been hit by hurricanes appear to treat the threat very seriously I am not convinced that the same applies here in St.Vincent and the Grenadines where we have been fortunate not to have suffered any major hit for some time. We have therefore to ensure that the education process takes place and that we never let down our guard. Of course everything cannot be left to Central Emergency. Resources have to be put in different regions/areas of the country in the event that any community is cut off and not easily reached by sea in the aftermath of a disaster. I am also referring to people trained in disaster management who do not have to wait until there is some central command before they can act and who will have resources at their disposal.

Jamaica has found itself in a peculiar situation in that it was hit by a hurricane at a time when it was in the midst of a bitter election campaign with a matter of a little over a week to go. As I write this column I am aware that there was a recommendation to postpone the elections for a week. The announcement of a new date as far as I am aware is not made up to the time of my writing this column. This postponement was inevitable since security personnel were expected to vote the day after the hurricane and obviously would not have been able to do so. With electricity and water supplies affected no one could have pretended that it was business as usual. But of course this complicates things. The hurricane did not wreak enough havoc to justify any long postponement of the elections but dislocations would remain for some time. The Jamaican people must be given credit for the manner in which they have responded so far despite still being engaged in a bitter election battle. I hope I am not speaking too quickly, but this must say something about the resolve of the people.

Prime Minister Portia Simpson will come in for more licks. She had been accused of delaying the calling of the elections for too long. They were thinking then of the reopening of school. Now there are going to be criticisms or at least more criticisms about her calling it in the midst of the hurricane season. Her declaration of a state of emergency the length of which she said was dependent on the time it would take for the utilities to restore their services, was in the context of an election campaign bound to draw strong criticism from the Opposition. It is really a difficult situation for although Jamaica was spared from a major disaster there is some element of disruption, in some areas, more than in others. Because of the short time available before the election the government is likely to find itself in quite an unfavourable position since it is unlikely to be able to bring the necessary relief within that time to the communities affected. In an election campaign there are those who would capitalise on this. In any event there will be a lot of grandstanding by both sides as they try to demonstrate their interest in servicing the needs of the affected community.

Vincentian students like students in the rest of the Caribbean who are going to Jamaica have been affected. Flights were cancelled since the airport was closed for a short period after the hurricane, but of course, in any case no one would have wanted to go to Jamaica until they were privy to the state of things. The University is now back in business and has delayed its orientation activities so students who are able to make it in by the weekend should still be able to participate in these activities.

Dean is no more but we cannot let down our guard. We must treat this seriously.