20,000 left homeless in St Vincent, Grenada

APPROXIMATELY 20,000 people have been left homeless or in severely damaged buildings in Grenada and St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) by the passage of Hurricane Beryl.

Speaking during a media conference to launch the regional response for Grenada and SVG hosted by the Grenada Information Service on July 11, Grenadian Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said 4,000 people had been left homeless after their homes were destroyed, while another 4,000 were living in severely damaged buildings.

“The people of Carriacou and Petite Martinique need to be fed and provided with basic amenities for the next six months. We have to demolish unsafe buildings before we can rebuild.

"Those islands are fishing and agricultural communities. Fishing boats and equipment were all destroyed. There’s no vegetation; the animals are dying because we have no animal feed. There’s no fuel; that has to be brought onto the island.

“The agricultural sector, the fishing sector, the marine industry, tourism, businesses, all badly devastated. The forest and foliage are gone. Our mangrove ecosystems were not spared.”

Mitchell said a complete assessment of biodiversity was needed, as well as beach cleanup, assessment and cleaning of the coral reef to encourage fish to come back.

SVG PM Ralph Gonsalves said over 3,500 households had been left homeless, with an average of three people per household. He said 2,500 houses had been destroyed in the southern Grenadines.

He said there were 450 primary and secondary school students on Union Island, who would have to be housed in St Vincent for the upcoming school year, along with their teachers and parents, who would also need income support.

Gonsalves said the international and regional organisations which provide aid are not fit for purpose for the relief that is now required, not including what would be needed for recovery and reconstruction.

Mitchell said significant capital investment would be needed and called on first-world countries to provide grant resources which were not loans.

“This funding should have been put in place before these events. The grants need to have quick disbursement post-hurricane.

“I’m calling for new facilities which will give small-island developing states on the forefront of the climate crisis to have access to funds. Currently the dispensation period is four-eight weeks: this is too long. We need the funds now. It’s been ten days since the passage of Hurricane Beryl and our needs are immediate.”

He said despite Grenada showing fiscal responsibility by putting aside funds for disasters, buying insurance for water and light companies, and getting catastrophic-risk insurance, this was just a drop in the bucket compared to what was needed.

“The cost of living here is too high for us to pay.

“We deserve and need to stay alive. We need your assistance. I am happy to join to make this appeal to international partners to provide aid to us.”

Gonsalves said Caricom had come to the country’s aid along with other friends and allies, but international assistance was needed.

“Resources are required beyond what has been proffered so far. We are grateful for what has been provided, but we will need income and production support for a significant portion of time while we rebuild.

“In the conversation about climate change, the small islands are decimated. We have been speaking about the issue but the major emitters are not listening as they should, or they are not summoning the political will to address the situation.”

UN resident co-ordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean Simon Springett said the UN supported CDEMA’s rapid assessment teams and has been supporting the disaster management agencies. He announced the launch of the national overview and planned response.

“This aims to provide lifesaving and time critical humanitarian support to over 43,000 people, 23,000 people in Grenada and 19,000 people in SVG.

"The response plan is based on three core objectives. The first is to scale up immediate and integrated co-ordinated humanitarian assistance by addressing lifesaving and most immediate needs such as food and non-food, water, shelter, shelter repair, and maintaining a complicated logistics and supply chain.

“The second objective is to support the restoration of livelihoods and all critical services, ensuring that early recovery in livelihoods is not an afterthought, and we all respect the principle of to build back better.

“The third objective was to make sure we focus on those needy groups and leave no-one behind, particularly those with vulnerabilities due to age, gender, disability, etc.”

Springett said the impacts on families and communities from Hurricane Beryl are stark.
He said while the UN would seek to help the governments with immediate human requirements, it would remain equally important to plan for medium- and long-term support requirements.

“What Grenada and SVG need right now is international financial support and global solidarity. I hope through these press briefings and meetings with these PMs, these will become even more clear.”

In total, 23 people died during Beryl, with about 11 deaths in the Caribbean and another 12 in the US, in Houston and Louisiana.