Day 2 of hurricane season and our 2nd Tropical Storm, named Barry, has hit
the Gulf Coast of Florida. If he strengthens (doubtful) he will become a
himmacane! Actually, at this writing, he has been downgraded to a tropical
depression.
Meanwhile in the BVI, we have scattered crowd cover, um, let's change that
to scattered cloud cover, moderate winds, and 81 degrees. Tropical Storm
Barry is not a threat to us at this time. Whew! But stayed tuned, you just
never know when Chantal may pop up on our horizon!
Washed ashore in a bottle at the beach:
Dear Miss Mermaid:
I'm still new to the island and am interested learning about how the
Territory prepares for hurricanes. I'm going tomorrow for the official
gov'ment Disaster Management tour, but I thought you might be able catch me up
on the deeper issues they would gloss over. I saw your site and figured your
insight would help.
Thanks you for your email! We have three different
types of people getting ready for a potential hurricane strike. The tourists,
the land folks and the boat folks. Well, and then there is the
government...
Typically the tourists want to stay for the excitement of the
hurricane, others want to leave, and many bemoan the fact it had to happen on
their vacation. We heavily encourage them to get to the airport with their
departure tickets (albeit for a different date) as early as possible and try
to fly stand-by out of here. It can't be a last minute decision, as there
won't be enough seats to fly everyone out anyhow, and at some point all the
planes leave for good, to be stored elsewhere until the storm passes.
About 90% of the boaters and their respective owners and
managers, generally prepare early for a storm, moving to the best hurricane
holes such as Paraquita Bay. Lately, the BVI government has been turning
away boats from other ports such as St John and St Thomas before a storm. St
John has a hurricane hole, but it's mismanaged by government with a
ridiculous long list of regulations, not written by a mariner.
Once tucked away, boaters typically rush to remove
everything from the deck, including sails and stash all that below. Extra
fenders are put out, often made of old tires covered in heavy duty garbage
bags. The smart boaters will find a concrete bunker ashore be it with
friends, in a hotel or in an emergency shelter.
The boat yards here used to be lackadaisical about
preparations, but have learned a great deal since hurricanes Luis and Marilyn
struck 10 days apart in 1995 leaving boats toppled and damaged in
many yards, when advance preparation would have saved many. Since then,
most boat yards require boaters to prepare their boat for a storm at the time
they enter the yard, even though no storm is on the horizon. This saves a lot of
last minute confusion.
The day before or the day of the storm the other 5% of
the boaters will rush around attempting preparations and complain there is
no where left to go. About 5% will actually do nothing to prepare or the
boats were left here with no designated caretaker and thus sit by themselves in
various anchorages. Usually that's the last we see of them.
The land lubbers, typically argue the storm ISN'T coming and
therefore no preparations are necessary. But about 10% of the people will take
early precautions to secure their property and stock up for the storm with food,
liquor, batteries, booze, water, beer, medications, rum, candles, alcohol and so
on. Notice the heavy emphasis on alcoholic beverages. Their friends and
neighbors will sneer at them for getting ready early.
Two days before the potential storm hit another 40% will start
preparations and at the grocery stores, the beer, liquor and wine aisles will
empty their shelves out first. Hardware stores often empty out their supplies
and lines are very long everywhere you go. The stores usually stack up a
mountain of Spam, canned Beef and Vienna Sausages in the mistaken belief that
this is all we're going to eat.
By now most gas and diesel stations have run dry, as
those with generators have stocked up and smart car owners have filled their
tanks. During hurricane season, I typically try to keep my car topped up
every few days, so that if and when we get caught in the cross hairs, I may
already have a full tank of gas and thus can avoid the long lines and
frustrations.
Banking before a storm is chaotic as many folks rush to
withdraw cash funds. This is because if we get a major strike, after the storm,
99% of the businesses that are able to re-open, will ONLY accept cash and no
credit cards or checks.
Ice cubes and blocks, both before and after the storm is
scarce. I believe the electricity is shut off when winds reach 50 miles
per hour, could be 35 mph or earlier, but at some point the current is going to
mash up and stay off until the storm is over. Once the storm has
passed, they generally inspect the neighborhoods before turning the power
back on.
Many last-minute folks are left poised with drill and plywood
and no current to run their power tools. One thing that disturbs me, is the
sudden building frenzy we are experiencing in the BVI has brought on a pile of
buildings that weren't even designed to protect
themselves from a storm. So many people will pound huge concrete nails into the
sides of their buildings, that will leave ugly unsightly gouges when the boards
are removed. Many more will simply put massive amounts of duct tape on their
windows (and it's fashionable not to remove it for the next two years
either...)
Surprisingly, Christmas decorations are rarely taken down, so
if they are still up in the summer or fall when a storm hits, they typically
remain up. It's not unusual to find a Santa Claus or a string of red and
green lights in your neighborhood bushes after a storm strike. Yesterday, I
drove by a house that still had all their Christmas decorations
up!
At this point, anyone with a generator , discovers they have
MANY friends and loads of company. This is why before a storm, many smart
people will tell you their generator is broken (it isn't!) but they don't want
128 people in their home during the storm.
In years past I've seen grocery stores actually empty out
completely before a storm, but I believe most have a handle on things now and am
able to somewhat restock and keep selling canned goods. Bread disappears off the
shelves and you can't seem to find a crumb for a week before the storm. This is
a phenomenon I don't understand.
The day before a potential storm hit finds another 25% of the
people start preparations and the day of the storm yet another 20% frantically
rush around making preparations and complain the store selections are minimal,
IF the stores are even open. This leaves another 5% of land lubbers, who
often do nothing to get ready for a storm. Once the effects of the storm start,
they typically show up at your door, empty handed and stay throughout the storm,
helping you deplete your supplies. (I think Aesop has written a similar Fable
about this too...)
While staying on a boat is the most foolish thing you can do,
every storm brings out some sort of macho male sailors, that insist on riding it
out on their boat. How they think they are going to maneuver or
re-anchor in 100+ mile an hour winds, is beyond anyone's
comprehension. Many disappear and this is usually covered up by the
government. With no body, you aren't presumed dead even though you and your boat
have vanished.
It is foolish to stay in a wooden building as if the storm is a
big one, the wooden structures are the first to collapse.
Everyone is encouraged to take shelter in concrete buildings
that are shuttered or boarded up. Some sturdy hotels will open up rooms and rent
to locals and tourists while others will claim to be booked full when in fact
they are empty. No I am not going to name names...
I think over the years the government has improved their
response time a great bit. Back in the dark ages, they often made no official
announcements until 24 hours before a potential strike and by then, if you
aren't already prepared, making preparations will be
difficult!
After the storm, the BVI is amazingly resilient. People pour
out into the streets and clean up the mess and get back to normal business as
soon as possible. Restaurants often cook up all their thawed food and serve it
for free. We've never had a looting problem or a curfew, unlike our USVI
neighbors who seem to have some serious looting problems and ridiculous curfews
after a storm. I pray the BVI will maintain this spirit of cooperation and
can-do attitude after a storm.
If anything, we in the BVI need to learn how to prepare EARLY
for a storm rather than waiting for a last minute rush. Businesses could
help with the cooperation by letting employees work only half days for the three
days preceding a storm strike, if their business is non essential. Others
like grocery and hardware stores are scrambling to keep employees because their
lines are long as everyone shops at the last minute. If you live in the BVI, or
any area that is prone to a serious storm threat this year, then you really
should think about getting organized now with your food stash, batteries and
supplies.
