![[IMG: Luis; Credit: Norm Nelson, Bermuda Biological Station for Research - http://www.bbsr.edu/Weather/]](http://www2.gobeach.com/luis5.gif)
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The Caribbean Hurricane PageUpdates from the Islands- - The Bahamas - - |
Map of the Bahamas (from Excite Maps)
Wondering about friends or family? Unfortunately I am unable to answer all the e-mail at this point of time. You can now post your plea for help on the Caribbean Hurricane Page Bulletin Board.
Do you have any info about the situation on the Bahamas? Please, forward it to me at gert@gobeach.com Also, check out the Bulletin Board. Let's try to help each other out! No news is bad news! Thanks, Gert
More Bahamas news at BahamasNet. Abaco Is. updates can also be found at: Abaco's Community Message Board. Note that you should not, I repeat, not post your plea for help on that message board. They are running in emergency mode and allow only 'new' information provided by ham radio operators and other first-hand reports. Please, post your plea for help on my board. Really, this is serious! Thanks, Gert
More recent reports can be found on another page.
| - Briland Modem: Soft Launch of Briland.com Coming Soon |
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Note from the Briland Modem Coconut Notes Team: With Bernel Davis, Teri Murphy, Karol King-Black, Richard Haskell, Harvey Roberts and Miz Ling already on board, we're happy to announce that an early version of the Briland Modem central information website will be ready for prime-time viewing in just a few short days. In the meantime, start packing your pens, pencils, PCs and Palm Pilots for your editorial debuts. We do want to hear from you as to your take on anything and everthing that's Briland -- the music, the schools, the history, the Fig Tree, the storm, the fishing, the farming, the straw work, the paintings, the stores, the roads, the library, the ocean, the harbour, the clinic -- so e-mail rum AT briland.com at your earliest convenience. An editorial calendar of topics and happenings will be posted with the opening of the site, which should help you brainstorm your Hemingway offerings. In addition to next week's launch, we expect to have a New Year's edition up during the first week of January ... and our resourceful editorial team will be creatively working around the present Batelco/Batelnet go-slow situation to bring you the latest updates from the fig tree. Goombay -- Kimberly __________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Harbour Island Beachfront Update |
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Note from Robbie Myers, Caribbean Landscaping: Dear Beachfront Property Owners -- We must first thank you all for your wonderful patience. [We were thinking of calling this a downdate as apposed to an update.] We have a confirmed report from Hertz that they will have a man figure out what is wrong with the electronics of the machine this week, and we hope to be up and running by weeks end. We will work all weekends from here on out. Thanks again for your patience and we will hope for the best. Sincerely, Robert Myers. __________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Harbour Island Millennium Celebration: New Year's Eve |
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Note from Tracy Barry, at The Landing: Jill Curry is in charge of fundraising for a Bay Street celebration for the Christmas season and to bring in the Year 2000. The idea is to have a central celebration at the main dock that everyone can come together for and enjoy. A fantastic, professional fireworks display is planned - the likes of which has never been seen in Harbour Island, with a Junkanoo rush out, street decorations and a 16-foot Christmas tree at the site of the beloved Fig Tree. Of course, all of this costs money and we are looking for donations. The basic cost of all of this is $10,000.00. We have already raised $5,000.00. If anyone is interested in making a donation toward the Christmas/Millennium fund, we would be very grateful - remember, every dollar counts! The more money we raise, the more fabulous our celebration will be! Cheques can be mailed payable to Jill Curry at Dunmore Deli or Briland Booze, Harbour Island, Bahamas. We are also looking for anyone who may know of a guest house or a couple of spare bedrooms to house the 3 men who will be coming from Nassau to operate the fire works. We need accommodation for them for just that one night of January 31st. Any suggestions or ideas on that one? Tracy Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Harbour Island Millennium Celebration: New Year's Eve |
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Note from Tracy Barry, at The Landing: Jill Curry is in charge of fundraising for a Bay Street celebration for the Christmas season and to bring in the Year 2000. The idea is to have a central celebration at the main dock that everyone can come together for and enjoy. A fantastic, professional fireworks display is planned - the likes of which has never been seen in Harbour Island, with a Junkanoo rush out, street decorations and a 16-foot Christmas tree at the site of the beloved Fig Tree. Of course, all of this costs money and we are looking for donations. The basic cost of all of this is $10,000.00. We have already raised $5,000.00. If anyone is interested in making a donation toward the Christmas/Millennium fund, we would be very grateful - remember, every dollar counts! The more money we raise, the more fabulous our celebration will be! Cheques can be mailed payable to Jill Curry at Dunmore Deli or Briland Booze, Harbour Island, Bahamas. We are also looking for anyone who may know of a guest house or a couple of spare bedrooms to house the 3 men who will be coming from Nassau to operate the fire works. We need accommodation for them for just that one night of January 31st. Any suggestions or ideas on that one? Tracy _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Ma Ruby's Travelling ... |
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Note from Kelly AT animlarts AT aol.com > We tried twice to visit Ma Ruby but she was > closed on our first attempt... Ma Ruby is currently visiting The Holy Land. I'm thrilled for her, and she'd be happy to know her adopted Brilanders are calling on her. We had her over to dinner during our visit at the end of October (and Ken and Dee were over the week before!), where we learned of her impending journey. We can't wait to hear about it, hopefully not having to wait 'til next fall to do so. Warm regards, Kelly Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: First-Time Visitors' Report [Harbour Island] |
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Note from Lisa Fedorchak: Kimberly ... Well, I'm sorry to say, I have returned from Harbour Island. You ALL were right, we have absolutely fallen in love with both the place and the people of HI. I ended up forwarding your best wishes to several of the Coral Sands staff - Big Red sends a big hello as does Bridgette. You and your family are obviously very well-loved by all who remain at the Coral Sands!!!!!! I was in the midst of a conversation with my travel companion about my web mail to and from you concerning the most recent restoration activities on HI when Big Red darn near jumped over the bar at overhearing that I have been conversing with you via the Briland page! I was privileged to hear some of the details about your father and mother (Big Red calls your mother the Princess Di of the Bahamas) and how wonderful your whole family was and still is to all the natives of HI. When I first began conversing with you on the Briland page, I didn't realise what a profound effect your family has had on the island. Big Red also sends his hellos to your sister Karol. We passed your home on the premises and it is lovely. All of Harbour Island is lovely! As a true animal lover, it was a wonderful surprise to be awakened each morning by the rooster (his call is quite comical though) and the potcake dogs were just the best things on four legs! I had one stripped potcake (his real home apparently is over near Coconut Grove) who joined me on my lounge chair one afternoon while I was fast asleep in the sun!!!! All of a sudden, I felt the front half of a very wet dog draped across my legs and it was no time before the hind quarters followed....... We had beautiful weather, a good trip over to Preacher's Cave and further south past the Glass Window to Governors where, tragically, the damage is much more severe than what we found on HI. We tried twice to visit Ma Ruby but she was closed on our first attempt and we were stopped by a wedding reception on the second attempt. Oh well. ... next trip! I didn't have one of your famous Mount Gays with tonic but I did down quite a few Goombay Smashes!!!! Every place we went on the island either for dinner, drinks, music or just plain sightseeing, we had a wonderful time. We took a peek at several of the other hotels and I can say honestly that the Coral Sands was my favorite. .... The Pink Sands' blue, purple, and pink would definitely get to me after a while and the Romora Bay was a bit lacking in that famous HI charm -- current owner - pffffttttt!. The other nice find was the Runaway Hill but we had a bit of an "in" there as my travel companion has a close friend who has known Carol and Roger for 20 years now. I would like to send my special thanks to Carol and Roger of the Runaway Hill for an absolutely terrific birthday celebration and for their warmth and kindness. It was a birthday I will not soon forget . I have really enjoyed writing to you Kimberly, and I thank you for all your responses. Maybe some day we will meet. We are presently looking to return for the end of December 2000 into January 2001 so maybe then. Let me also send my thanks to Ken Smith for all of his suggestions, recommendations and Harbour Island contacts. They really made our trip enjoyable and you were right Ken, we will be returning to Harbour Island! In speaking with Big Red, I learned of your father's passing .... my sincere condolences to you and your family. I too lost my father last year. When you return to HI this Christmas, please give my best to Big Red (what a charmer he is!) He was so happy to know that you told me of him in our correspondence. All he kept saying was "did Kimberly mention me? I would be surprised if she didn't mention me!" and when I said "Oh, yes! She mentioned you by name" he seemed so proud and happy. So, please tell him hello from me when you see him. That's all for now. I'll keep visiting the Briland page until I return and I wish you all the best. It is not hard to see why HI is the home of friendly people! Lisa Fedorchak Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Wedding at Romora Bay Club, Dock & SCUBA Update |
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Note from Jill Mackenzie: We just returned from 10 days on Harbour Island during which we got married at the Romora Bay Club. The island is making an amazing recovery from Floyd though the work continues. We are very thankful to the many islanders who made our wedding memorable. We had fabulous meals at Romora Bay, Harbour Lounge, the Landing, Pink Sands, and Coral Sands (our group likes to eat!). Romora Bay dock is rebuilt, as is Jeff Fox's and his crew took out several boats for scuba diving and snorkling. Weather was also a factor due to heavy surf from Hurricane Lenny (but at least they dodged that storm). We can't wait to return to Harbour Island! Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Building Supplies For Harbour Island [November 1999] |
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Thanks to a dozen really great people, the Briland Modem Relief Fund has raised $9,500 to date for the purchase of building materials to repair many islanders' homes damaged during Hurricane Floyd. Ben Bethel and Gregory Higgs have been coordinating the priority of the repairs being made, and are preparing a list of all homes that have been worked on so far .. and an overall review of the work that remains to be completed. Repairs continue as the necessary rebuilding materials arrive by boat. Three shipments -- $1,500, $5,000 and $1,500 - have been shipped to Harbour Island. As a matter of fact, the most recent shipment arrived on the island on Saturday via G&G Shipping, and we have been assured by the shipping company that the complete order of shingles and felt is on board. For now, the one bill that remains outstanding is that of the freight costs, for which the Fund will reimburse Gregory Higgs in December. In the meantime, Mr. Bubba of Palm Beach Lumber has been most generous in dispensing with all delivery costs incurred carrying the lumber and related supplies between the store in Palm Beach and the G&G Shipping docks - more than one hour south -- in Dania, Florida. Stay tuned for more updates - Kimberly _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Ministy of Finance & Planning - Tariff Exemptions |
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The following Act was Passed by the Bahamian Government on 15 November, 1999. THE EMERGENCY RELIEF GUARANTEE FUND ACT, 1999 (ACT No. 44 OF 1999) THE EMERGENCY RELIEF GUARANTEE FUND (EXEMPTION FROM CUSTOMS DUTY) (ABACO AND ELEUTHERA) ORDER, 1999 The Minister, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 17 of the Emergency Relief Guarantee Fund Act, 1999 makes the following order: 1. This order may be cited as the Emergency Relief Guarantee Fund (Exemption from Customs Duty)(Abaco and Eleuthera) Order 1999. 2. The building materials specified in the Schedule and imported into Abaco and Eleuthera shall be exempt from customs duty for the period of twelve months from the date of this order. SCHEDULE Adhesives, Cabinets, Ceiling Fans, Ceiling Spray, Cement, Central Air Conditioning Units and Wall Units, Concrete Blocks, Doors, Door Strips, Sand Railing, Faucets, Felting, Floor covering excluding carpet, Flashing, Formica, Glass Doors, Glue, Grout, Guttering, Hardware, Hinges, Hurricane Clips, Insulation, Joint Compound, Lime, Locks/Latches, Lumber, Marble Lite, Nails, Paint, Plumbing Fixtures (Including Bath tubs, toilet bowls, sinks and toilet tanks), Plywood, Putty, PVC Pipes and Fittings, Screens, Screws, Septic tanks, Sheet Rock, Shingles and Roof Covering, Shower Heads and Fittings, Soap Dishes, Steel , Stones, Thinset, Towel Racks, Vanities, Varnish, Watermakers, Windows, Weatherstripping?. Signed 15th day of November, 1999 Minister of Finance and Planning Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Beach Restoration Update [Harbour Island - Caribbean Landscaping] |
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It has been very difficult to log on and can only do at low demand hours In Nassau, and not at all from H.I.. Please let me state that patience is the name of the game in the Bahamas, for those that don't know this already! It should be practiced daily. It seems that in H.I. one should take a double dose. The rumors are true and we have completed numerous properties to the South and have moved to the North to help those operating tourism-related business. This has been at the expense of the home owners and we can only hope that they will understand the importance of our decision, if they don't, are advised to take another dose of the patience medicine. We are doing are damnedest despite several set backs. Setbacks include: 1. Fuel supply on Island is contaminated with water and is clogging equipment filters on a daily basis. 2. Locally hired (Brilander) equipment operator was incarcerated for misbehaving and has had to be replaced by one of our operators from Nassau. 3. Frequent power cuts have often prevented us from purchasing fuel and thus leaving machines inoperable. We are very pleased with the progress and the quality as are those property owners who have had works completed and the beach is recovering very well. We will commence with planting works as soon as we have completed enough dune work to justify plant shipments and mobilizing a crew to install the same. This planting will drastically reduce the sand blowing into the houses And significantly increase the speed of additional dune building and stabilization. We would encourage persons to get involved in this system. I have had a hard time getting in touch with people in H.I. and would suggest leaving messages with Jill & Doug or Geraldine Albury's office, they have been very kind in contacting me when I am on island and I check in with them. We have had a very positive response to the works we are doing and the times seem to be coming out as estimated. Thanks for staying in touch and all the help you have provided. Sincerely, Robert Myers _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Beach Restoration Update [Harbour Island] |
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Recent communication from Dotty Taylor [dzt AT batelnet.bs, but please don't send any .jpegs or other long attachments!] on Harbour Island. Please note that Batelnet -- the local ISP -- has been having problems of late, which is why we've been able to get so little first-hand news from the island: Kimberly I will try to send this and hope it reaches you. The beach equipment is here and working daily. Howard Siegel, Bill Law, and Rich Farrington's dunes have been finished. They then moved to Runaway Hill which opened this past weekend. The past few days they have been at Dunmore which opens soon. My understanding is that they will then go back south and start working down the line on houses that have signed up. I have not talked to Robbie yet but that message is from someone who did. The work they have completed so far looks great. Dotty :-) _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Construction Skills Program - Harbour Island, North Eleuthera |
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Note from Don Strube on November 11, 1999. See the emphasis on the Harbour Island/North Eleuthera element of the program highlighted below. Kimberly The need for construction skills and labor in the Abacos is overwhelmingly large right now and there are very little available funds to pay for rebuilding, especially in the hardest hit settlements such as Fox Town and Sandy Point. A program entitled Construction for Education has been conceived by Dr. Sharon Kossack, Professor at Education at Florida International University. Dr. Kossack is also the founder of the very successful Every Child Counts program in Marsh Harbour which provides aid to children with learning disabilities. The goal of Construction for Education is to teach young people in the Abacos construction skills so that they may take an active role in the rebuilding of their community and learn a marketable trade along the way. Not only would they be rebuilding homes but building their futures as well. Think of the ramifications... - Teens would learn useful skills that could help them earn a wonderful living in a part of the world that is sure to undergo tremendous growth in the future. - They would gain the respect and admiration of their peers and members of the community by being part of the rebuilding project which is a necessity, not an option. - They would experience the sense of pride and achievement that one receives when you “build something.” (Guys, you understand - monuments of manly hood - Tool Time Har Har) - It would help these young people focus on something positive rather than dwell in all that is not right in theirs lives during this very difficult time. The Rotary Club of Marsh Harbour is sponsoring this project and will organize local groups of young people in the islands to participate, select and prioritize the projects, and assist in the legal and logistical aspects. However they are relying on CFARE (The Central Florida Abaco Relief Effort) to provide support with skilled volunteer instructors, tools, and materials, and quite frankly we need all the help we can get because the need is so great. There is now staffing on Abaco to get the wheels rolling and provide some supervision, the next step is to acquire the necessary tools and materials needed so the teens can get started. If you are interested in donating any tools or supplies please send me an e-mail and I will respond with a detailed list of our needs. If you would like to help but aren’t very “tool savvy” here’s a neat idea, donate a home improvement warehouse gift card from either Lowe’s or Home Depot and let us do the shopping for you. These gift cards are located near the registers in all of their stores, and are purchased like any other item. The cards are activated by the cashier when purchased, and are available in denominations of $5, $10, $25, $50 and $100. These gift cards are not credit or debit cards, but work just like cash toward purchases at any of the stores. You can also ORDER ONLINE FROM LOWE’S (http://www.lowes.com/lowes/findex.asp) through their secure server and have your gift cards shipped right to CFARE! Please send as many gift cards as you like to.. CFARE - Don Strube Jr. 2814 Silver Star Road Orlando, FL 32808 407-293-6810 All tools, equipment, and other assets or material which are donated to this program will only be used for work on charitable projects in the Abacos and will not leave the islands. Once our job is done we will give all donated equipment to the Rotary Club for distribution among local churches and schools. We will do our absolute best to insure that the fruits of your generosity will help those who are truly in need. This is only the first step in a lofty yet exciting endeavor but with your help, and a little help from above, we are confident that it will be a big success. If you are interested in learning more about Construction for Education please send me an e-mail or call me at your convenience. My office number is 407-293-6818, extension 160. Thank you for your interest in helping the Abacos! We're trying to learn how to walk before we run but if we can get some momentum going in Abaco I would love to see the program move south to Eleuthera. I used to spend a lot of time in Harbour Island and have a soft spot in my heart for the people there. Personally I'm new to this relief business and am focusing on Abaco because I've been visiting there for 30 years and have been to the poorer settlements on the island a bunch of times since the storms hit. I am familiar with the area, the people, and the needs and the slow response to rebuild is a real bummer but a reality just the same. Hopefully we can give the effort a little jump start with the Construction for Education idea. If you know of someone who would like to spearhead a chapter of this concept in Eleuthera please ask them to e-mail me. Two rookies are better than one. We are also working on another program to collect surplus textbooks from U.S. school systems and send them to the islands. So far the response has been great and I'll bet we end up with more than are needed in Abaco. Of course we will be more than happy to send them to Eleuthera and points beyond if needed. Let me know if there's and interest in books as well. Thanks for your response, any advice is appreciated. Don Strube Sincerely, Don Strube Director - CFARE You can visit our web site at... http://cfare.mpinet.net/main.html Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Photographs of the Beach [Harbour Island] |
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Michael Stoner sends these recent views of access to the beach next to the Ocean View resort, looking south toward Pink Sands Club. Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Customs Tariff Suspension Update |
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Hello, all -- The moratorium on duty for rebuilding supplies -- being brought into the Bahamas post-Hurricane Floyd -- has been extended through November 2000. Please note that all building supplies being imported must be approved by the local administrator, which on Harbour Island is Commissioner Rufus Johnson. Please fax your itemized list to Comm. Johnson's attention at 242 333 2268. For other areas of Eleuthera, the commissioners in Governors Harbour and Rock Sound are the local administrators to get in touch with. Hope this helps -- Kimberly Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: The Fig Tree [Harbour Island] |
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More classic shots from Michael Stoner -- Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Photographs of Bay Street [10 November] |
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Michael Stoner took these photographs of Bay Street on Harbour Island, post-Hurricane Floyd. Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Fishing [aka PLP] Dock - Harbour Island |
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Another Michael Stoner original -- Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Anyone in Rainbow Bay? |
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If anyone has information -- or connections to information -- from Rainbow Bay, please e-mail back at your earliest convenience. Note from Mary Karam Swann on Briland.com: I would appreciate any halp you might give me regarding the safety, and whereabouts of my uncle, Robert Karam, & his wife, Inge Karam, who have resided in Rainbow Bay, Eleuthera, Bahamas for the past 28 years. I last spoke to my uncle (who is approaching his 87th birthday), the Sunday prior to Hurricane Floyd's destructive path through Eleuthera. That would be two days before the storm. I have tried to call him on countless occasions and have been unable to get through to him. The US Embasy in the Bahamas suggested I email you in the hope that you could get me some information. I thank you for any assistance you can give me. Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: Valentines Dock Update |
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Note from Michael Parks of Valentine's Yacht Club [e-mail safharb AT batelnet.bs]: New date for reopening Valentines Yacht Club is 15 February 2000. All docks are being completely renovated, as will be the club house and pool. Work has started on the resort side, and the dock work will begin in the next weeks. Interested boaters can contact 1-877-NEW-DOCK Monday through Friday for the latest updates of the renovation project. We decided to include a seawall in the reconstruction along with some other enhancements which should negate the potential for land side damage. As we speak we are refurbing our front 12 rooms, redoing the inside of the club area and getting ready to re-furbish the pool and landscape the patio and pool area. Thanks - Michael _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Caribbean Landscape Rebuilding of Harbour Island Beach |
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This pertains to those businesses and private residences on the beach side of Harbour Island that were damaged by erosion during Hurricane Floyd, and is an overview of the situation and suggested remedy. Please address all inquiries to Robbie Myers at Caribbean Landscaping, via e-mail at <robbiemyers AT grouper.batelnet.bs October 6, 1999 Attention: All Property Owners Harbour Island, The Bahamas Re: Beach Mitigation. Dear Property or Homeowner: We were recently invited to a meeting held in Harbour Island by Mr. Howard Siegel and Mr. Bill Law and attended by several homeowners along the beach. In this meeting many important issues were discussed by a coastal expert from Olsen & Associates, Kevin Bodge. We will attempt to summarise these recommendations as discussed. Mr. Bodge felt that there were extreme cases that warranted physical hard or soft structures to be erected to protect houses in eminent danger of damage from slippage and future storms or hurricanes. These structures could be either soft geo-bags filled with sand, sheet piles or properly engineered sea walls. The disadvantages of these types of solution are that these barriers can cause other problems to the property and neighbouring properties. After construction of these structures in the designed locations it is then highly recommended to rebuild the dune to a three to one slope and then re-vegetate the dune for stability. This rebuilding would be done using the existing sand building around the high water mark. Our company has worked in Harbour Island for some twenty years or more and we have designed and built many properties on the island over the years. Dune mitigation after Hurricane Andrew has been some of the work we performed along the pink sand beach. We are offering our services of providing reliable equipment and supervision of the dune rebuilding and planting works in accordance with the guidelines of Olsen & Assoc. and the Bahamian Government permit for the dune mitigation. Our complete intention is to do this work in careful a manner so as to protect the beach line as well as the dune. It is important to perform these works in as complete a line along the beach as is possible so as not to have any weak areas in the future. We will be mobilising the equipment recommended by Olsen & Assoc. for this work. We are aware that each property is unique in what is required and the amount of time that is required to re-establish the dune and planting. In order for each property owner to understand the magnitude of the work at hand we will attempt to exemplify the quantities of sand and equipment time required on a typical property. Assume a property width of 100' with a 10' eroded cliff that requires a three to one slope will require approximately 555 to 600 cubic yards of sand (allowances made for compaction). Assuming that this sand is available at the high water area then it will take between 10 and 13 hours of equipment time to place the sand. This time allowance does not provide for the moving or burying of any trash or debris that may be in the area, nor working around rocky shore lines and assumes that the volume of sand is there at the high water area. This example is given strictly as a guide for the property owner to make determinations as to their cost for their properties. We will in every way possible endeavour to assist property owners with their specific requirements along the beach. Yours truly, Robert M. Myers. We the undersigned agree to hire Caribbean Landscape Ltd's machinery for rebuilding the dune on Harbour Island Beach in accordance with this contract. Caribbean Landscape's estimated hourly costs for machinery to replace sand to the toe of the dune is as follows: Description Estimated Range 544 Pay-loader with 3 cubic yard bucket $125.00 to 135.00 per hour D5 or D6 Dozer with 6 way blade $150.00 to 175.00 per hour All pricing is subject to change based on final shipping costs and insurance's of equipment to the Island and shall not exceed the maximum above stated rates. All properties shall be clearly marked at either boundary by the owner and identified to a Caribbean Landscape representative for the purpose of keeping accurate records of the equipment time used at each property owners section of the beach. Final billing shall be based on equipment hours spent on each property and is payable immediately on receipt of invoice. Past due receivables shall be liable to pay interest charges at 1.5% per month and all legal costs incurred for collection. To date we have already made quite an investment in time to the project and are ready to secure equipment and labour for the project provided we obtain firm commitments from a number of owners. In this regard please fill out the information below and return it to us along with deposit as instructed. Owners Name: Tel: Fax: Mailing address: Property Name & location: Length of beach front & number of lots: Deposit of $2,500.00 Bahamian dollars to be held by Mr. Howard Siegel in an escrow account at Royal Bank of Canada (Harbour Island Branch) and to be paid to Caribbean Landscape Ltd. on arrival of its machinery onto Harbour Island. Owner's Signature: Date: We the undersigned agree to hire Caribbean Landscape Ltd to replant the dune on Harbour Island Beach in accordance with this contract. Part Two Caribbean Landscape's estimated planting cost for labour, equipment and materials to replace planting approved by Olsen & Assoc. on the dune is as follows: Description: Planting diversified dune type liners 2.5' on centre. Budget Rate: $3,600.00 per 100 lineal feet of dune by 35' width. All pricing is subject to change based on final shipping costs and insurance's of equipment to the Island and shall not exceed the maximum above stated rates. All properties shall be clearly marked at either boundary by the owner and identified to a Caribbean Landscape representative for the purpose of keeping accurate records. Final billing shall be based on actual square foot measurement of planting of each property and is payable immediately on receipt of invoice. Past due receivables shall be liable to pay interest charges at 1.5% per month and all legal costs incurred for collection. It is necessary to give advance notice on all plant material orders due to the complexity of shipping, permitting and storing, please keep this in mind. Owners Name: Tel: Fax: Mailing address: Property Name & location: Length of beach front & number of lots: Deposit of $2,700.00 Bahamian dollars to be paid to Caribbean Landscape Ltd. to secure plant materials. Please note that the growers are into winter growing months and 8 weeks notice will be required on all plant purchases not placed by the middle of October 1999. Owner's Signature: Date: Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: H.I. Island Update [26 October 1999] |
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All of the local homes, businesses and expat houses are coming along nicely. No local homes appear to be without building supplies right now, and a lot of the winter resident homes are undergoing renovation. A few of us had cocktails at Jef Fox's place and his new-and-improved view [read: 200 sand bags are holding up the side of the house until sand reinforcements can be brought in] of the ocean is completely unbelievable. One of Rose's final gifts to the island was the transformation of the former divers' apartment/frat house at Run Joe's complex into the new veterinarian clinic for the island. Huge fire sale at VDC was quite sad, with Bob and Kenneth Stewart and Rose and Jerry Albury getting rid of everything that they could, including the dive boat. No work being done on Valentine's whatsoever. It's amazing to everyone that the Reach and the offices and the bathrooms were able to fit in such a small space, now that we can get a look at the actual foundation. Lot of work being done up at Harbour Island Marina, and that place will be in shape over the next few weeks. Busy at Coral Sands, too … and they open on the 30th. Fast Ferry/Bo Hengy built a new beach house beside Coral Sands, with bathrooms and showers and lockers for visiting day trippers. We had lunch at Pink Sands, which looks terrific. Didn't go into Romora, but could see that the docks were blown away from our vantage points at both Harbour Island Marina and the turtle dock at the end of Dunmore Street. The houses in the Narrows fared quite well, even those close to the beach. I'll have beach, harbour and island pictures up as soon as I can get them developed and scanned in. Tip Top's open, Hilltop has the best produce on the island, Summer's is going gangbusters, Pigly Wigly features the best coconut trifle next to Miz Sybil's, Arthur's Bakery is fine and the Pizza and Pushups place has been partially replaced by Charlie's new Town Center Bar, aka Island Cafe. He and Brennie are getting married soon, and they both look great. Everyone's still in shock over losing Paddy Lewis, which subject was the frequent topic of conversation wherever we went. I really liked the Bo Hengy ferry, which I took to and from Nassau since I had to take a few meetings with clients as I came through. Very well-built, great 2-hour ride, lots of locals using it ... and yes, they spent $10K renovating those stinky bathrooms on the government dock, as well as building a lowkey wooden building with bathrooms and showers on the beachside right next to Coral Sands. $90/roundtrip at this point, although I've suggested frequent traveller packages for folks on the island who have been really using it to coordinate their rebuilding efforts. Christmas shopping update: [Hey, Kristi asked!] Actually, just about any island maps from Rene's or great stuff [frames, knacks, music] are available at Dilly Dally - the cool new place being run by Mr. Sidney's niece just beside Tip Top -- or various prints from Harvey Roberts' new gallery just catty corner from Bonefish Joe's and across the street from Miz Jacqueline's Straw Market. Miss Mae's wasn't open. Pink Sands was open for guests. There's a new gallery beside Miss Merle's Monty's Hardware taking off, too, owned by Charles Carey. Androsia's open, the fuel tanks are clear, the shops are doing business and everyone's quite busy. Jill Ironside's running Briland Browser as Funny Pyne takes some time off. I love Queen Conch, which is a cool stand in front of Pineapple Tavern that serves up excellent scored conch and conch salad while you wait. LaVaughn Percentie runs the place, right next door to Wade Higgs' fried chicken takeaway [yes, competing with wife Joy's chicken shack closer to the Fig Tree!]. Harvey's new place is just down the street, catty corner from Bonefish Joe's and across the street from Miss Jacqueline's straw market. When he's not serving as local island administrator overseeing the reconstruction of the island post-Floyd, he actually gets a chance to paint. That's it for the King Briland update.. See yinna soon -- Kimberly _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - 10/18 Guana Cay Update |
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A quick note of progress on Great Guana Cay (please post to your boards) Rebuilding efforts (Power restored) Better than ever! Higher Voltage! In the event should we temporarily lose power we have provided every Local Bahamian with a generator, Marine Battery, 12 volt Fans and various supplies. The Community has established a check in/out sheet for the use of specific items i.e. pressure cleaner. Everyone has been doing extremely well. I would say they are all physically exhausted and could use the help of Volunteer Crews to help clean up left over debris on the front street in order to begin the Beautification/rebuilding that is greatly needed. Mr. Kent Smith Owner of Dolphin Beach Resort has once again graciously opened one of his Villas until November 1st to accommodate Volunteers for this project. I was told by Kent a Villa can sleep up to six men very comfortably. If you know of able body persons (this is physical labor) Please contact me A.S.A.P. My husband Lynn will provide transportation from either West Palm, Ft. Lauderdale or Miami to Marsh Harbor and Back. Volunteers should bring with them a pair of Heavy duty work gloves, some sort of back brace/support used for lifting and may want to consider Ben Gay or other for muscle relief after a day of bending and lifting. Volunteer Duties include; handling a chainsaw to cut remanning trees and removal of stumps. Loading of debris onto trucks and hauling to dumps. racking of seagrass (not easy) building of steps at various locations down to beach. reeling left behind powerlines into bundles and placing in storage area for pick up by BEC. Painting, Pressure Cleaning, pumping of pond, general all around cleanup. Volunteers to report to Mrs. Donna Sands / Mrs. Laura Sands of Great Guana Cay Community Relief. Relief Supplies-At this point the Great Guana Cay Community is asking for donations for Restoration & Beautification of Plants/Trees. Landscape Volunteers needed along with clean up crew. Here is an opportunity to plan, restbench areas with flowers and create atmosphere for the Cay. Open and Reopening Government Dock - fully operational / dock your boat and you will be greeted by are Welcome to Great Guana Cay sign provided by local Artist Mendy Berkson Fig Tree Liquor Store: Regular operating hours 10:00 until 5:00 PM Monday thru Saturday. Among Liquor, Beer and Wine Mrs. Jeanness Roberts offers a variety of Soft drinks, Ice, Chips, Single size Pizza, Hot-dogs and Cookies. Community gathering is under Guana Cay FIG TREE -- locals sit by this old fig tree mentioned in the hit song of Barefoot Man's CD.... come sit a spell under the old fig and take your picture along the crystal sea! Guana Souvenirs - Regular Hours 8:30 AM to 7:00 PM Monday thru Sunday check with owners Terri & Anthony on later hours during the season. Guana Souvenirs has beautiful handcrafted Bahamian gift items, Post Cards, Jewelry, T-shirts, Cigars, Bathing Suits for both Men & Women. Stop by and see what they have to offer, your sure to find something to take home to everyone. Milo's - Stop and see the gallery, fine crafted Bahamian driftwood, shell necklaces. Milo also has the original phrase T-shirts - It's better in the Bahamas but, it's gooder in Guana... Stop by, you maybe lucky and able to buy one. Seaside Gospel Church will hold regular Holiday Services all visitors welcome. Please stop by to view services posted just outside. God Bless Guana Cay. Guana Harbor Grocery: Regular Hours 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM Monday thru Saturday Great Guana Cays only full service grocery, everything you need. The Purple Porpoise - Family Ice-cream Shop just past the Grocery Store and owned by the same family. Check to see hours of operation. Mostly opened after dinner time ... yummy! Nippers Beach Bar & Grill - Open 11;30 until last Tourist leaves. Serving Lunch/dinner Bahamian/Amercian cuisine. Abacos Notorious Sunday Pig Roast Buffet. Upcoming Holiday menu - American Thanksgiving - Deep Fried Turkey & Trimmings. Christmas Dinner Menu to Come (hope Ms. Jackie makes her Duck) truly delicious! Johnny's Millennium Bash sure to rock us into 2000! Dolphin Beach Resort: November 1st reopening as scheduled prior to nasty Floyd. Please check with your travel agents for reservations or 1-800-ABACO GO. In the Bahamas 242-365-5137 www.dolphinbeachresort.com Mermaid Cafe on the premises has wonderful breakfast buffet's, Lunch and Dinner also available. Need more information check out the write up in "What's On Abaco" October 1999 issue. Cocoa Paradise: to be updated. Was unable to speak to Maria & Tommy (owners)expect them to reopen by November 1st if not sooner. Guana Beach Resort - sorry no word of future anything. Orchid Bay Marina - Fuel open and available Golf Cart Rentals - Donna's Golf Carts open VHF Ch 16 ' Young Lovers' Explore Guana Cay in a new golf cart you'll love our island. Weekly and Daily rates Located on Great Guana Cay. Homeowner Rentals/ Mrs. Donna Sands - owner of Donna's Golf Carts has various Homes for rent, However she is booked unto February of 2000. For future reference you may contact her at (242)365-5195 . Mrs. Cherly Christ has been very busy with her rental properties please check out her website www.bahama-rentals.com or email her ( abacogirl AT baham-rentals.com) Mr. Paul Alberte has a beautiful two bedroom cottage on the beach, interested contact him via email Paul AT guanabeachhouse.com Mr. Bruce McCullen- Owner of Elephant Beach Cottages has openings in November please contact him for more details on booking your vacation.. Cottage are located on the North Side of Beach on High Dune for great View. zorro AT mbsympatico.com or 204-677-2012 or fax 204-677-2399 Community Meeting: To be held 7:00 PM in School 10/18/99 Town meeting with Island Representative Glen Lang, Administrator Hart invited to discuss Garbage Issue and proposed new road. That's all for now.. Oh yeah two things. Saturday Night a few of us having dinner at Nippers all stood together facing the sea of Abaco for a glorious Red Sunset with Anthony Roberts broke the silence with a ..... Red a Night Sailors Delight! Monday my Ferry ride back to Marsh Harbor was perfected with the beauty of Six Abaco Bottled Nose Dolphin. they were playing literally jumping out of the water it was truly a beautiful site! Come back home to Abaco.. Please excuse any errors my report will be updated upon each return from Guana Cay. Michelle Ruiz-Borrow Ruizamc AT aol.com |
| - Abaco Relief and Rebuilding Update #3 |
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Abaco Relief and Rebuilding Update #3 - from VERY soggy Ft. Lauderdale: 17 October 1999 - 12:27AM Update #3 contains the following information: 1. Relief/rebuilding effort overview 2. New cay-by-cay updates 3. Covered in next update: Abacos Every Child Counts program + more Floyd pix 4. To submit business/resort/rental home repair-reopening-rebuilding updates 5. The Bahamian government's relief effort policies 6. Donations information 7. Supplies still needed 8. Thanks to all 9. Instructions on how to add or remove yourself from this mailing list -------------- WFTV-4 Orlando Eyewitness News -- "On September 15 of this year, the eye of Hurricane Floyd passed directly over the Abaco Islands of the Bahamas. Recorded wind gusts of 230 miles per hour combined with storm surges of 20 feet and ocean waves in excess of 40 feet have left these islands decimated and thousands of the islanders homeless." No matter how you look at it, Floyd was and is a major catastrophe for the people of the Abacos. As is unfortunately the case, those who could least afford to lose anything were the biggest losers. 75% of the homes on Mores Island uninhabitable ... Sandy Point covered with water to a depth of at least five feet ... Fox Town and northern areas exposed to a 20++ foot storm surge (with 20-30 foot waves reportedly towering above the surge!!) ... desperately needed Abaco schools and libraries partially or totally wiped out (the Bahamian educational system produces high school graduates with a 95% literacy rate ... about 28% higher than the U.S.!!) ... almost total disruption of the Abacos' social and physical infrastructure (phone, electric, water, roads, etc.). It's a pretty grim picture. On a much more positive note, within a few hours of Floyd's exit from the Abacos, the personal and material rebuilding and relief efforts (the VAST majority from outside the Bahamas) began. Emergency relief materials, food and water started pouring in and, most important, actually getting to the folks in the "need it most" areas. In addition to more than 800,000++ pounds of Broward-generated rebuilding and relief supplies that have been shipped as of 10/14/99 (via Broward County's G&G shipping) to the Abacos, 1000's of kind and concerned folks from elsewhere in Florida and all over the US, Canada and Europe opened their checkbooks (go-abacos visitors alone donated upwards of $4000!), rented supply delivery trucks, broke their piggy banks, held fund raisers as far away as Virginia and as close as Ft. Lauderdale's Stiles Corporation, and, in general, have been incredibly human ... an extraordinarily welcome change from the constantly "in your face" INHUMANITY of seemingly omnipresent death, dismemberment, destruction, decivilization and drugs which saturate our "civilized" media and creep ever closer to our doors. Yes, it's gradually getting better in the Abacos. And when the rebuilding is complete, it will be a WHOLE LOT better in the Abacos! But a lot of time that will pass, a lot of backs will be sore, a lot of hands will be calloused ... and a lot of new friendships will be made before the Abacos are restored and "right" once again. While the majority of Abacos resorts and tourism-related businesses will reopen in time for "The Millennium", a large part of the insurance-covered Abacos' RESIDENT population will have a less-than-festive New Year's celebration unless we continue to help. With our continuing assistance, the Abacos WILL ultimately be a whole lot better, a whole lot sooner than most of the U.S. areas which were impacted by Floyd's unwelcome and unruly cousin, hurricane Andrew. Why? With a little bit of help from their friends, the good, kind, hard-working, "can do" people of the Abacos won't let the destruction and devastation surrounding them (and their neighbors) deter them from putting their islands back together in record time. I guess this is just one more reason why we choose to escape from our "civilization" to travel to the honest civilization of the Abacos. I might be wrong about this ... but I kinda doubt it. Regards Rick Graef/webmaster rick AT go-abacos.com -------------- http://go-abacos.com The "local knowledge" vacation and map guide for The Abaco islands Coming soon: http://goabaco.com 1574 NE 36 Street Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33334 ------- ------- 2. Settlement and Cay UPDATES (Detailed updates on SOUTHERN and NORTHERN ABACO - Sandy Point, Crossing Rock and Coopers Town/Fox Town) are available on <http://go-abacos.com/storm>): MAN-'O-WAR - October 12, 1999: Things seem to be almost normal by now on MOW. Boats which were aground have been moved, and Edwin's 1 & 2 are working constantly to get repairs done, along with the work which was scheduled before Floyd. Many foreign home owners have been down to check on or work at getting their properties back in shape. There is still more work to be done than workers to do it, so many things will take time, but the progress is amazing. The Eastern Harbour looks as it always has, but just with a "haircut" to the shrubbery. Even the trees, shrubs and mangroves are coming back. There are patches of green everywhere, and the sturdy native plants are leafing out with vigor. In terms of the MOW community, the greatest concern I've heard expressed is that the roof blew off the Library building. This roof needs to be repaired. And when the new roof is in place, there will be a need for new books, since many of the ones they had are irretrievably water-damaged. If any of the folks coming down here have space for a carton of books they could contribute, the donation would be welcomed. Businesses are back up and running, and for the most part things are back to something resembling "normal." House rentals are going forward, Hibiscus Cafe is serving both lunch and dinner, and the breezes off the ocean are cooling things a bit while we wait for the shade to return fully. Margot Lee ----- TREASURE CAY Steve Rutledge on October 10, 1999: Robert Meister and TC has contracted with a firm from Florida to get the power infrastructure back in business. They arrived Friday with a retired distribution manager from Florida Power & Light. Poles and transformers have also arrived along with trucks, etc. I talked with these people at length. They report that getting the above-ground service running will be completed within three to four weeks. When I got there on Friday, there was no power in my villa and many of the other villas in the BVOA. Saturday morning the power was on! The only villas (BVOA) that don't have power are the ones along the main road and that should be fixed within a day or so. Today (Sunday), BEC was working to get power restored to the TC school and airport. The real problem with power restoration is Windward Beach/Brigantine. These areas have underground service. Some of it was destroyed/damaged and transformers were wrecked by the saltwater. I have no idea how long it will take to get these areas up and running. You can get lunch and dinner at the Tipsy. Marina Store and Little Switzerland are closed. Grocery store, convenience store and Florence's open as usual. Hope this helps everyone. I thought the power situation was the most important. ------ GUANA CAY Posted by Nancy and Bruce McDaniel on October 09, 1999: It (looks like) Springtime on Great Guana. The buds are coming out in force. We don't know where our bug friends are but they are not bad at all. Much less than in other bug seasons past. 6 employees from Freeport Power and BEC are working on the lines 14 hours a day and the locals feed them lunch and dinner. They are staying at Dolphin Beach. Nippers has a temporary stairs to the beach (an elevator of sorts). Insurance adjustors are everywhere (they have this certain look -easy to spot). 80 of 'em showed up to Nipper's one recent Sunday - some sort of a convention we guess. The grocery still has no fresh produce or veggies - which were supposed to come Thursday on the boat - no such luck. We are all sunburned from the sun bouncing off the sandy soil with no bush to reflect back. Planes still flying over on weekends to check us out. We wave back. Power begining of next week we think. A campaign to raise money for restoration of our beautiful palm fringed harbour is in the works by Donna Sands and Edmond Pinder. We are raising money for palm tress, oleander, hybiscus, sea grape, benches, grass. Lyn and Michelle Borrows in Miami are in charge. Please consider a contribution. You will be remembered with a plaque at the new harbour greens area. Dolphin Beach and Nippers have been featured in the November Travel and Leisure Magazine! We are just a little bit excited. ------ ELBOW CAY/HOPE TOWN: Elaine Bennett on October 08, 1999 at 14:50:00: Thank you all so much for the great response we have received with the request for funds. The fund raising is going very well and it is so gratifying to know so many people care and are willing to help. We have accounting for all deposits received and will send individual acknowledgments when feasible. If you have any specific concerns as to whether your donation has been received, please contact me at HTAsc AT aol.com. We have positive reports back from folks in Elbow Cay and also from those that have visited. It is amazing what has been done in three short weeks. There is great concern about the damaged and destroyed dunes; as all of Elbow Cay, including the Settlement, is dangerously exposed to the Atlantic Ocean. The Hurricane Season is not over until November 30. Following that threat is the season for winter gales in the North Atlantic that can also send large ocean swells in our direction. The task force is working very hard to get the defences in place but it is going to take a lot of money. Hopefully we will also receive donations of heavy equipment, manpower and vegetation to bind the dunes. ------ Marsh Harbour and Green Turtle Cay updates (for business and tourism facilities) are available on <http://go-abacos.com/storm>. Information on these areas has not changed since the last update. ------- ------- 3. Lynn Cameron (Director of TV Channel 4's [WFOR] Neighbors-4-Neighbors disaster relief) as well staff members from the Sun-Sentinel newspaper have expressed great enthusiasm in helping to help the people of the Abacos on a long-term basis. We are currently working to schudule a maximum of 5 folks + yours truly on an early November press/fact-finding/"meet the people who can help make a difference in the Abacos" trip. We plan to meet with members of the educational and library facilities, as well as Cay and Settlement community leaders to ascertain how we can best help make things a bit better for the Abacos, and especially ALL the Abacos' children. The inspiration for this coalescence of professionals is Dr. Sharon Kossack's (Florida Atlantic University) "Every Child Counts" program, which is already having a significant impact on the educational facilities in the Sandy Point area. The objective of this group would be to develop a long-term "what can we do to help" relationship with the schools and libraries of the Abacos. There is also a good possibility that a major computer manufacturing company will be willing to donate as many first rate computers (and all necessary software) as could be effectively and efficiently employed in educational environments through the Abacos. I will have some sort of confirmation on the computer company's role in the next Abaco Update. ------- ------- 4. If you have any RELIABLE knowledge of specific relief and rebuilding efforts, or re-opening dates not included on go-abacos or in our newsletters, PLEASE send it to: reopening AT go-abacos.com. Among other things, many of the 7,500 people per month who visit the go-abacos website are looking for rebuilding/reopening information to plan their next Abaco adventure. <http://go-abacos.com/storm> Updated twice weekly or as time-sensitive information is received, this page offers interactive map access, on an individual settlement and cay basis, to vacation facilities' "reopening" updates and timeframes as well as settlement/cay relief, repair and rebuilding updates ------- ------- 5. Additionally, if you are planning to bring relief supplies or donations to the Abacos (or Eleuthera), the government regulation on duty free/stamp tax free importation of materials are easy to follow, but strictly enforced as follows: PLEASE DO NOT go to the Abacos to personally deliver relief supplies unless you have some kind of permission, authorization or permit from The Bahamas Government. Please address your faxed permission request to The Bahamas Government Hurricane Relief/ Administrator Joseph Ferguson (FAX) 242-327-5807 - Attention of Ms. Theresa Butler - Permanent Secretary, Office of the Prime Minister. On your fax, you must include who you are, where are you going, why are you bringing materials (for the relief effort), the list of items on your plane or boat, tail number of plane or boat registration ... you need an official authorization (by return fax - usually 4-5 hours) before you leave, or you may not be allowed in and/or will be charged duty on your relief supplies. The Administrator's office will forward a copy of your duty and tax waiver for your relief shipment to the customs officials at your stated destination, and the whole relief supplies and immigration process will then proceed smoothly. If you need to come in, you must bring your personal documents as well. Please check for updates, because policies will change at some point. ------- Additionally, as is unfortunately the case in major catastrophes, a few "less than altruistic" relief groups have also come crawling out of the woodwork so, if you're considering donation of funds or materials for the relief/rebuilding effort (or know someone who is), please make sure you have dependable knowledge of the groups or individual(s) to which/who you're donating. The relief organization of which go-abacos is a part (primary members as well as contact, financial donation and material drop-off information can be found at the end of this update) are working under Bahamas government guidelines and are in frequent contact with senior government officials. ------- ------- 6. Abaco supplies/material drop-off locations: GULFSTREAM International Airlines 5926 Ravenswood Road, Fort Lauderdale Mon-Fri., 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For information on shipping, please call: 954--266-3000 Ext. #200 ------- G & G SHIPPING 750 NE Seventh Ave. Dania Beach, FL Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For information on future shipping dates, please call: 954-920-0306 ------- Financial donations to the Abacos or to specific CAYS or SETTLEMENTS: Neighbors-4-Neighbors [CBS CHANNEL 4 - WFOR - SOUTH FLORIDA 8900 NW 18th Terrace Miami, FL 33172. Accepting monetary donations only please make checks payable to neighbors-4-neighbors - 100% of all donations will be applied to Abacos RELIEF. Please note Abacos RELIEF on your contribution. All donations are tax deductable. For information, please call: 305-597-4404. ------- Hope Town Association Relief Fund These funds are for the benefit of Elbow Cay as decided by the Board, chaired by Vernon Malone. The Association has existed for over 10 years and has a solid record of providing help where most needed on Elbow Cay and in the surrounding communities. Donations of any amount made directly to the Miami Account either by mail or wire will be available immediately to the Fund. All donations will be acknowledged but only those passed through Mr. Joe Shrier and PERC Inc. (minimum $250) will receive USA tax deductible IRS 501 (c) (3) receipts. Forward non tax deductible donations directly to the following account: Account # 100-321-9 Wire Transfer ABA # 066010694 Royal Bank of Canada, Miami Agency, 801 Brickell Avenue, Suite 2100, Miami, Florida 33131 Tax Deductible Internal Revenue Service 501 (c) (3) designation donations: A Florida based, not for profit, corporation exists as a conduit for donations to the Abacos from U.S. taxpayers. "P.E.R.C. Inc." (Preservation, Environment, Recreation, Community) has a U.S. Internal Revenue Service 501 (c) (3) designation People wishing to donate to the Hope Town Association Relief Fund (minimum of $250) requiring a tax deductible receipt, should make a check out to P.E.R.C. Inc. and forward it to Mr. Joe Shrier with instructions to pass it on to the Hope Town Association. A formal P.E.R.C. Inc. letter acknowledging the gift will be sent to the donor. You may contact Joe at 19300 Story Rd., Rocky River, OH 44116 Contact Joe Shrier, summer and fall (440) 333-2446 home (440) 356-5250 office or eventually in Hope Town 366-0349. Thank you for your help, Elaine Bennett, Secretary-Treasurer, Hope Town Association ------- ------- 7. Supplies still needed include: Roofing materials and related supplies (sheet rock, plywood, shingles, roof felting, facia boards, lumber (2x4, 2x6), roof nails, tacks, hurricane clips and wiring); tarpaulin and visequeen (heavy plastic sheeting), non-perishable dry foods (rice, flour, grits), canned foods, towels, toiletries, baby food and formula, diapers, mattresses and bedding, cooking utensils, chain saws, home siding, screening, first-aid kits, flashlights, books (new or used) for libraries and schools (please see Man-'O-War and Treasure Cay update information on their respective pages on <http://go-abacos.com/storm/map.html>. ------- ------- 8. Many, many thanks to: Gulfstream International Airlines (Airline President Mr. Tom Cooper and Wendy Clements); Channel 4's (WFOR) Neighbors-4-Neighbors program (Lynn Cameron and Mayte); the Jefferson-Pilot radio stations in South Florida; radio stations WIOD-AM, WINZ-AM, WQAM-AM, ZETA 94.9 FM; Stiles Corporation (Ft. Lauderdale - Terry and Theresa Stiles, Jeff Lis); Broward Motorsports (Davie - Shawn); Home Depot; Italian Seaways (Miami); Treasure Cay Services (Ft. Lauderdale - Robert and Kelly Meister); Ride Motors (Hallandale); G & G Shipping (Dania Beach); American Marine Products (Bob Sullivan); Marine Industries Association of South Florida (Maureen Anstey of Prudential Florida Realty), Florida Yacht Brokers Association (Barb Tierney of Bradford Yacht Sales), Catholic Charities (Bruce Netter - Archdiocese of Miami) and many, many other anonymous Florida residents, clubs, organizations and corporations. ------- ------- 9. You have received this newsletter/Abacos relief and rebuilding update (the third of an on-going series) as a result of (1) your request, (2) your e-address was provided by Lori Lachnicht/Bahamas Travel Network, (3) you previously expressed interest to go-abacos in finding out more about the Abacos or (4) you "opted-in" to go-abacos.com's e-mailing program. If you would rather not receive additional information from go-abacos about the Abacos relief and rebuilding efforts, please send a blank e-mail to: <nostorm AT go-abacos.com> FROM THE E-MAIL ADDRESS WHICH WAS ON THE NEWSLETTER YOU RECEIVED and we'll immediately remove your name from our update list. We've received only two removal requests to date from the 800+ recipients of this update, and neither of the removal requests referred to an e-mail address within our files. We apologize if you've received this newsletter in error. If you've received a copy of this newsletter from a friend and would like to add your name for future mailings, please send a blank e-mail to: <subscribestorm AT go-abacos.com> ------- NOTE TO ALL ABACO BUSINESS - mailto:rebuild AT go-abacos.com - Whether or not you're a go-abacos sponsor, PLEASE provide us with news of your business' occupancy/use status and, if you're "closed for repairs", please tell us when you expect to be open. Go-abacos averages (pre-Floyd) more than 7000 individual visitors per month, and these folks need to know as soon as possible when you'll be "open for business" so they can begin planning their next "Abaco Adventure". Please send all information to rebuild AT go-abacos.com and we will post it as quickly as possible. Rick Graef outislands AT go-abacos.com -------------- Bluewater Marketing Services, Inc. Regional, national and international marketing, advertising and communications services -------------- 1574 NE 36 Street Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33334 954/568-5214 |
| - Briland Beach Property & Hotel Owners: Caribbean Landscape Overview |
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Note from Robert Meyers Property Owners Pink Sands Beach Harbour Island, The Bahamas Re: Beach Mitigation. Dear Property or Home owner; We were recently invited to a meeting held in Harbour Island by Mr. Howard Siegel and Mr. Bill Law and attended by several homeowners along the beach. In this meeting many important issues were discussed by a coastal expert from Olsen & Associates, Kevin Bodge. We will attempt to summarise these recommendations as discussed. Mr. Bodge felt that there were extreme cases that warranted physical hard or soft structures to be erected to protect houses in eminent danger of damage from slippage and future storms or hurricanes. These structures could be either soft geo-bags filled with sand, sheet piles or properly engineered sea walls. The disadvantages of these types of solution are that these barriers can cause other problems to the property and neighbouring properties. After construction of these structures in the designed locations it is then highly recommended to rebuild the dune to a three to one slope and then re-vegetate the dune for stability. This rebuilding would be done using the existing sand building around the high water mark. Our company has worked in Harbour Island for some twenty years or more and we have designed and built many properties on the island over the years. Dune mitigation after hurricane Andrew has been some of the work we performed along pink sand beach. We are offering our services of providing reliable equipment and supervision of the dune rebuilding and planting works in accordance with the guidelines of Olsen & Assoc. and the Bahamian Government permit for the dune mitigation. Our complete intention is to do this work in careful a manner so as to protect the beach line as well as the dune. It is important to perform these works in as complete a line along the beach as is possible so as not to have any weak areas in the future. We will be mobilising the equipment recommended by Olsen & Assoc. for this work. We are aware that each property is unique in what is required and the amount of time that is required to re-establish the dune and planting. In order for each property owner to understand the magnitude of the work at hand we will attempt to exemplify the quantities of sand and equipment time required on a typical property. Assume a property width of 100' with a 10' eroded cliff that requires a three to one slope will require approximately 555 to 600 cubic yards of sand (allowances made for compaction). Assuming that this sand is available at the high water area then it will take between 10 and 13 hours of equipment time to place the sand. This time allowance does not provide for the moving or burying of any trash or debris that may be in the area, nor working around rocky shore lines and assumes that the volume of sand is there at the high water area. This example is given strictly as a guide for the property owner to make determinations as to their cost for their properties. We will in every way possible endeavour to assist property owners with their specific requirements along the beach. Yours truly, Robert M. Myers. _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Harbour Island Wedding |
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Note from Jim and Judie Reynolds: Just wanted you to know that we just returned from Harbour Island. it is really shaping up down there. our daughter had her wedding ceremony in our front yard and it was beautiful! the homecoming they held was a little noisy at times, but they had a couple of "ceremonies" with the locals thanking God for sparing them any major disasters. locals were thrilled about the wedding, and most stopped by, even tho the big funeral for paddy lewis was that day. but the kids loved it too. my daughter and her husband rode the horse and carriage around, and everybody waved and wished them well. there was also a double rainbow later in the day (it rained late for about 5 minutes) and they all said it was a good sign. we had a canopy tent up, balloons, and palm leaves draped. some of the locals even gave her little wedding gifts. it was great. the men worked right up to the moment, replacing and repainting our fence that was knocked down, and got a hold of a guy from the nursery where we got a couple of palm trees. it could not have been better if we had planned it for years. somebody told us it was a good sign that the island was bouncing back, and they were so glad that we went ahead with the wedding. the beach looks rough, but was being cleaned up some while we were there. already a lot of our foliage is growing back. hope irene stays away. i will email some pictures of the wedding when we get them developed. all in all, our guests had a great time. everybody pitched in and the wedding couldn't have been better! my daughter and her new husband were thrilled. what a great bunch of people the brilanders are. everybody seems to be fine down there and amazed at how things are progressing down there already. Judie & Jim Reynolds. _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Harbour Island Beach Property Owners |
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Dear Property Owner: Please contact us at 242-377-1149 or fax at 242-377-3383 with regard to beach restoration works we will be performing starting on 25th October 1999. We would be happy to fax you a copy of our informational letter and forms for completion of work. We will be in Harbour Island on the 15th & 16th October -- Sincerely, Robert Myers _____________________________________________________ CONVERGENZ/Solutions New Media Brokerage & PR and Tech and Marketing Consultancy www.convergenz.com Guerrilla Marketing - Strategic Planning Public Relations - Corporate Communications 10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 244 - Toluca Lake CA 91602 USA Tel 818 761 5688 - Fax 818 761 0024 Skytel Page 800 278 5769 - eFax 800 861 4606 |
| - Briland Modem: Don Taylor's Latest Beach Wall Cost Calculations [Harbour Island] |
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Note from Don Taylor: Please note that the estimator dated October 14 is the most valid source of potential costs. Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
| - Briland Modem: NYC Hurricane Relief Fundraiser [29 October] |
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Please forward to any Friends of Briland [or Friends of the Bahamas, for that matter] that may reside in the New York area -- Note from Gail Tweedy: The Bahamas Consulate here in NYC has organized the Bahamians and Friends Hurricane Relief Committee, to help raise funds for some of the devastated islands from Hurricane Floyd. The committee has decided to host a Reception and Dance on Friday October 29, 1999, at the Marriott Downtown Hotel, 3 World Trade Center, NYC. The are two parts of the program, the Consul Generals Reception from 7-8pm and the main Reception from 8-12midnight. This reception will include a wonderful assortment of hors d'ouevres and champagne and a cash bar (and I am teaching the Marriott to make Goombay Smash). There will be lots of good food, friends and most of the money raised will go directly to the Hurricane Relief Fund. The cost for both events is $120 or $100 for the Consul General's Reception or $60 for the main event. There will also be entertainment, some celebrities, a raffle for valuable gifts and some surprises. We hope that everyone in the greater New York Area will come to the program and support this very worthwile cause. For further information you can call the Bahamas Consulate here in New York at (212) 421-6420 or you can email me at g_tweedy AT yahoo.com. Thank you for your help with this, and look forward to seeing you on Harbour Island. tweedy Briland Modem ___________________________________________________________ News & Information for North Eleuthera and Harbour Island, Bahamas www.briland.com [It's much better in the Out Islands.] |
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