Global Issues
Brixton watches the weather
Published 23 August 2007
Hurricane Dean prompts memories of its devastating forerunner - Hurricane Gilbert - which destroyed or damaged almost four-fifths of the Jamaica's houses
Only a few days ago, the centre of Brixton hummed with delight as local people celebrated the anniversary of Jamaican independence. Little did the partygoers know that disaster loomed on that tiny island state in the Caribbean. A tropical storm, christened Dean, was in the making and heading for the Caribbean islands, there to announce the beginning of the hurricane season. The warm waters of the Caribbean transformed the storm into a hurricane that smashed through St Lucia, laid waste to banana farms in Dominica and Marti nique, and set its course for Jamaica.
The satellite forecast predicted that Jamaica was almost certain to receive a direct hit, with the eye of the hurricane passing directly over the island. Tourists swarmed to the airport in desperate attempts to avoid Dean. The government declared a state of emergency and a 48-hour curfew, and opened emergency centres to house large sections of the population.
The prompt action by the government was inspired by the experience of previous hurricanes. In 1988, Hurricane Gilbert devastated Jamaica. Almost four-fifths of the island's houses were damaged or destroyed. Battered by wind speeds up to 185mph, the entire banana industry was destroyed. Tourism, which accounts for the major slice of Jamaica's income, took savage blows. In every parish, the island's infrastructure was severely damaged. Trees were wrenched from their roots as though they were mere weeds.
I arrived on the island only hours after Gilbert had gone its miserable way towards the United States. The wind and floods had caused havoc everywhere. The scene was almost biblical, the product of an ordeal by wind and water. Not a single area of the country was left untouched.
Hundreds of thousands of Jamaicans who had migrated from that tiny island state to the US, Canada and the UK pitched in with material assistance. The governments of those countries and charitable organisations sent tinned food, huge sums of money and clothing. The task of recovery seemed insuperable.
Three years ago, Ivan again tested the fortitude of Jamaicans. Having blown Grenada to smith ereens, Ivan (the terrible) headed for Jamaica, lashing out at property and agricultural crops. Fortunately, it was not as destructive as Gilbert but it still did huge damage. Ivan claimed 34 lives in Grenada and 11 more in Jamaica.
And now we have Dean. These hurricanes are christened, at times, with names so gentle and innocuous that they conceal the vicious consequences they can have on Caribbean society. Dean was first sighted by satellite as a simple tropical storm offering the possibility of rain and light winds. But after the warm waters that surround the Caribbean islands had whipped the storm into a hurricane, we were warned that it fell into category five and that the eye of the hurricane would arrive imminently over Jamaica with winds of 145mph. The Jamaican government responded at once. Those of the other islands were on standby to offer assistance.
Luckily, only the south coast was hit severely before Dean travelled onwards to the Yucatán Peninsula. Six deaths were recorded. The heavy gusts of wind altered the coastline in Port Royal, Kingston, but as I write, the hurricane has been downgraded to category three. This is just as well, as the entire population of Port Royal stayed put, having refused to go to any of the evacuation centres that had been organised in all the parishes. Apparently, the inhabitants were worried that looters would raid homes and steal just about all their household items.
There has been severe infrastructure damage and the government will surely be seeking overseas aid. I am sure Hugo Chávez, the Venezuelan president, will step up to the plate.
The outflow of goods and money from Jamaican communities here in the UK has already begun. Long queues are growing outside the offices of money transfer businesses. Pound shops here in south London are doing a brisk trade. The barrels are beginning to roll in the direction of the Caribbean, and this may have to continue over the next couple of months.
Severe weather events in places like Jamaica and St Lucia have a hugely detrimental effect on the tourism industry, which is the mainstay of most Caribbean countries. On the bright side, this is the low season, when the number of tourists is nowhere near as great as in the first months of the year. On the other hand, the hurricane season has only just begun.
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