Record-setting Hurricane Beryl – the first storm to reach Category 5 strength at this point in the season, made landfall Monday, July 1, 2024, with winds up to 150 mph. Grenada’s Carriacou and Petit Martinique, along with St. Vincent and the Grenadines, took the brunt of Beryl’s fury in the Windward Islands. Follow us on Facebook for more updates.
Our September Reader’s forum has content related to Beryl here – August 26th
Tracking Beryl from Sea, Sky and Space – Aug 26th
Beryl Comes to Bequia – Aug 26th
JN Group Launches I Support Jamaica Fund for Beryl Victims – Aug 26th
Hurricane Beryl’s Silver Lining – Congratulations, Trinidad and Tobago! – July 29th
PM, Union Island residents discuss relocation of students – July 26, 2024 Searchlight
Grenada implements ‘free barrel’ programme in the aftermath of Beryl – July 22, 2024 Caribbean Loop News
PM, Union Island residents discuss relocation of students – July 26, 2024 Searchlight
The API – The Agency For Public Information: St. Vincent and the Grenadines, is a great way to keep up with the latest SVG info on Beryl – July 25th
Bequia, Canouan Wharfs: Beryl Damage Reports & Restoration Plans – Jul 25, 2024 St. Vincent Times
Canada Charity Collaborates with Island Rebuild Efforts – July 25th
UNICEF – Eastern Caribbean Area Office HURRICANE BERYL Situation Report – July 24, 2024 UNICEF
July 24th – UNICEF has deployed personnel to Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines supporting the affected Eastern Caribbean countries to recover from the widespread devastation caused by Hurricane Beryl which passed through the region on 1 July. Authorities continue to work steadily to restore services such as telecommunications, electricity, water to as many communities as possible. Situation in numbers:
Situation in Numbers
3,810 children in need
16,453 people in need (Grenada: 6,734 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: 9,719)
1,369 # people in shelters in 74 shelters (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) – 151 boys; 144 girls
302 # people in 18 shelters (Grenada)
9 Confirmed dead (4 Grenada, 5 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)
Read the Full NICEF – Eastern Caribbean Area Office HURRICANE BERYL Situation Report – July 24th.
Hurricane Beryl: An opportunity for collaborative research – July 24, 2024 NOAA
Grenada implements ‘free barrel’ programme in the aftermath of Beryl – July 22, 2024 Caribbean Loop News
The Auckland Zoo supports hurricane-hit Caribbean conservationists – July 22, 2024Aukland Zoo
July 15th – Post-Beryl News Updates from the Southern Grenadines
Courtesy of Outhouse Graphics/Bequia This Week
Devastation in Mayreau – video
iWitness News has just published a lengthy video on You Tube showing the widespread
devastation in Mayreau. The report brings home with acute clarity just how hard hit the
island was by Beryl.
The footage includes a number of interviews with residents expressing their concern for
the future of the island which is so heavily dependent on tourism, especially given
Beryl’s breaching of the isthmus that once protected Salt Whistle Bay. For an accompanying
brief article in iWitness News, see here.
Bequia Express 3 Carries Building Materials to Mayreau
The API (Agency for Public Information) today shared footage of the Bequia Express
3, (chartered by the SVG Gvt), loading flat-bed trucks of lumber, galvanize, and other
building materials in Port Kingstown, to be delivered to Mayreau.
According to the video report featuring the Hon. Orlando Brewster, Minister of National
Mobilisation, Social Development and Housing, this is the first of many shipments of
reconstruction materials which will be delivered to the southern Grenadines.
Good news from Vinlec
The St. Vincent Times today reports that Vinlec CEO Vaughn Lewis has indicated that
the main village of Canouan may received electricity again by the end of next week,
subject to inspection. Mayreau is likely to receive electricity the week after, at the
beginning of August. For full article see here.
US$15 million Donation Pledged by private Canouan Resident
The St. Vincent Times reported late yesterday evening that according to PM Ralph
Gonsalves, a private homeowner in Canouan, unconnected to the Canouan
Development, has pledged US$15 million in relief, cleanup and recovery funds for both
Canouan (approx US$10 million), and Union Island (approx US$5 million). For full article
see here.
Gem Star 2 Providing Relief Service Again
Following the Searchlight report cited by us yesterday, stating that Gem Star 2 had
announced it was “Out of Service until further notice”, we have now been informed that
this announcement was intended to convey only that their regular service / schedule to
the Grenadines had been suspended, not that the vessel itself was “out of service.”
In short, following trips to Barbados for the collection of relief supplies, Gem Star 2’s Gvt
charter work in service of the ongoing relief, cleanup and recovery efforts to and from
the southern Grenadines, continues!
INTERNATIONAL AID UPDATE
UN Immediately Released US$1.5 million Emergency Aid for Grenada and SVG
Prior to the launch of its US$9 million response plan for Grenada and SVG, and very
shortly after the passage of Beryl, the UN released US$1.5 million from its Central
Emergency Response Fund to be split between Grenada and SVG “for immediate life-
saving assistance”.
See 4th July UN report here and the ABC news report here.
DUTY FREE CONCESSIONS – MORE DETAILS
-A number of you have contacted us about the Duty Free Concessions on relief items
and barrels recently announced by the Ministry of Finance and referenced in our email
of yesterday. Two things to note:
-The import of chainsaws must be accompanied by a Licence from the Forestry
Department.
-Applications for a Licence must be made in person to the Forestry Dept
offices in Camden Park, St. Vincent
-The make, model and serial number of the item must be supplied, along
with the name of the person to whom it is being sent
-This Licence must then be presented to Customs before clearance can
be facilitated
The import of barrels between now and December 31st is only free of Duty etc
if the contents of the barrel are confined to food and clothing. Anything else
July 14: News from Outhouse Graphics/Bequia This Week
With power and internet finally restored to our location July 13, 2024, we can now press ahead right away with the production of the next issue of Bequia This Week, which will be out on Friday July 19.
In these difficult and distressing last two weeks, Bequia has shown itself to be a place where resilience and community spirit has brought out the best in everyone. Thanks to widespread extraordinary individual and group efforts, including Rise Up Bequia and the Bequia Disaster Committees in conjunction with NEMO, and most especially the team at Vinlec, Bequia is well on its way to getting back to some sense of normality.
Our thoughts remain, however, with those in Bequia who have lost their homes and remain in shelters, or who have suffered loss or damage to property and possibly to their livelihoods. Much has to be rebuilt, repaired and restored and the need is still great.
Our thoughts are also constantly with our brothers and sisters and fellow stakeholders in SVG and Grenada, especially in Canouan, Mayreau, Union island, Palm Island and PSV, and Grenada’s Petite Martinique and Carriacou. They face a long, hard and immensely challenging struggle in the months ahead.
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HOW TO DONATE TO HELP RECOVERY FOR THOSE IN NEED
The Gvt of SVG has set up aDisaster Relief Fund to provide for emergency supplies, shelter and vital services for those affected.
In Bequia,Action Bequia, The Grenadines Initiativeand their partnersCommunity Foundation For SVG are continuing to raise funds to assist with relief and rebuilding, coordinating closely with locally-based agencies on the ground such as Rise Up Bequiato ensure that funds go to where they are most urgently needed.
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BEQUIA BUSINESS UPDATE
Most shops, grocery stores, and services are open more or less as normal, and many businesses in the hospitality sector also already back open or, where indicated below, will re-open in the coming days. These include:
- Bequia Plantation Hotel, Belmont
- Frangipani Bar & Restaurant, Belmont
- Dance and Prance, Paget Farm
- The Cocktail Lab, Bequia Marina
- Sugar & Spice Cafe @ Frangipani
- Laura’s, Belmont Walkway
- Tantie Pearls, Cemetery Hill
- Jacks Bar (re-opening Wed 17th)
A few businesses however, have been hard hit or are still without power, and will be closed for a little while longer – some even into the start of the new season. More details and updates will be included in the new issue of Bequia This Week, out this coming Friday.
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HURRICANE BERYL AFTERMATH – SOME UPDATES FOR SVG
As you are no doubt aware, the southern St. Vincent Grenadines – especially Union island, Mayreau and Canouan – have suffered catastrophic damage. Beryl’s eye wall, where the strongest winds and severest weather is located, passed directly over Union and Mayreau (see attached screen grab from 11am on Monday July 1st).
Power restoration in the Southern Grenadines
PM Gonsalves has been advised by Vinlec that Mayreau and Canouan may not get power back for the next 6 – 8 weeks; in Union this time frame could stretch into many months. For report in iWitness News, see here.
Transport to Southern Grenadines hampered
The Jaden Sun and Gem Star 2 had initially been commissioned by the Gvt of SVG to operated a frequent service to the southern Grenadines in this immediate initial phase of relief, to facilitate both the movement of goods and working personnel, and evacuation/ relocation.
However it was reported today that the Jaden Sun has technical problems and will be out of service for at least 6- 8 weeks, and that the Gem Star 2 is also out of service. See Searchlight report here.
Recent Local Reports from Union, Mayreau, Canouan and Mustique
- Union – see Searchlight here
- Mayreau – see One News St Vincent here
- Canouan – see Searchlight here
- Mustique – see One News St. Vincent here
- Grenada and SVG – see T&T Newsday here
PAHO Situation Report No. 9, 12th July
The latest PAHO Sit Rep, dated 12th July (see here) and covering both Grenada and SVG, gives the following information for SVG:
- Approx number household in SVG affected by Beryl – 3500
- Total number of deaths recorded in SVG related to Beryl – 9
-
- Union – 4 deaths, 1 critically injured
- Mayreau – 2 deaths, 2 critically injured
- Canouan -2 deaths (?) 1 critically injured?
- Bequia – 1 death
- Total current shelter occupancy in SVG as of 11th July. including informal shelters is given by PAHO as 1021, including informal shelters.
CDEMA Shelter Report, 12th July
For more detailed and slightly variant breakdown of shelter numbers, including informal shelters, as published by CDEMA via ReliefWeb, see here (SV mainland), and here (Grenadines)
According to CDEMA’s data, the overall total in shelters in SVG is currently 1221. This total is broken down as follows:
- Mainland St. Vincent -total 775
- Grenadines – total 446
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- Bequia – 57
- Canouan – 119
- Mayreau – 55
- Union Island -215
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World Food Programme
The United Nations World Food Programme is supporting relief efforts in SVG and Grenada in the form of emergency food assistance – see here.A Press release as of 11th July stated that The WFP had rapidly mobilized 5000 food kits, consisting of canned and dry food and cooking oil – enough to feed 15,000 people for 10 days.
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Recovery Costs to Run into Hundreds of Millions of Dollars – PM
Speaking to the US-based, independent news programme Democracy Now on 3rd July, SVG PM Dr. Ralph Gonsalves said:
“Union Island is flattened. That’s an island of 2,500 persons. Mayreau, similarly, with a hundred family homes, and Canouan, somewhere between Mayreau and Union Island in terms of population, that they’re all severely damaged. In fact, on Union Island, everybody is homeless, similarly in Mayreau”.
He continued: “This, the devastation wrought in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, is going to be hundreds of millions of dollars. I wouldn’t be surprised, at the end of it, that we’re probably going to have to rebuild upwards of a thousand homes. And it’s a country with 46,000 households. So, you will see the magnitude of that.”
For transcript of Democracy Now interview, see here. For similar initial assessment of recovery /rebuilding costs, see iWitness News here.
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EC$50 Million allocated from SVG Contingency Fund
On Wednesday 10th July, PM Gonsalves reported that the first tranche of EC$15 million had been released from the allocated EC$50 million from the Contingency Fund, in response to rebuilding efforts following the passage of Hurricane Beryl. See NBC Radio report here.
The SVG Contingency Fund was set up in 2017 to assist the country in cases of unexpected events including natural disasters and health emergencies. Funded since 2017 by an additional 1% on VAT, the fund, as of January 2024, stood at EC$61 million.
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Duty Free Concessions for SVG
To further aid recovery efforts, the Gvt of SVG has announced a 100% waiver of all import taxes on all relief supplies and personal barrels. For full details, including the duration of the waivers, see here.
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Regional and International Aid to Grenada and SVG
The following commitments have so far been recorded, but this list is likely to be incomplete. Apologies to those nations or bodies who may have been overlooked!
- Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) has disbursed EC$1 million each to Grenada and SVG – see Antigua Newsroom report here
- CAF Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean has disbursed US$100,000 each to Grenada and SVG. See T&T Guardian here
- Gvt of Anguilla has donated EC$250,00 each to Grenada and SVG – see OECS Press Release here
- The US Gvt through USAID has announced plans to provide US$1 million in aid each to Grenada and SVG – see USAID Press Release here and US Embassy in Barbados release here
- The European Union has released up to 850,000 Euros in humanitarian aid via the International Red Cross and Red Crescent to aid Grenada, SVG, Barbados and Jamaica, plus emergency supplies and expertise. See the Relief Web report here.
- The Gvt of the Republic of China (Taiwan) has pledged an emergency grant of US$200,000 to assist with recovery efforts. See iWitness News here.
- The Gvt of the UK has pledged £500,000 to “Caribbean countries affected by Beryl” see Guardian report here
Additionally, aid in the form of emergency relief supplies, perishable and non perishable good etc and pledges of support have been also been received from amongst others, the Gvt of Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (see St Vincent Times here), and the Cooperative Republic of Guyana (see here).
The private sector in multiple countries and islands including Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados has sent relief supplies, and private individuals continue to raise funds through mechanisms such as GoFundMe.
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United Nations Launches US$9 million Response Plan to help SVG and Grenada
On Wednesday 10th July, the UN and its partners announced the launch of a $9 million response plan (US$5 million for Grenada and US$4 million for SVG) to provide urgent humanitarian aid to 43,000 people in Grenada and SVG. See UN Press Release here and iWitness New report here
Simon Springett, the UN Resident Coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, which includes Grenada and SVG urged: “Swift action is imperative to meet the pressing needs of people whose homes and livelihoods have vanished overnight.”
Info from Early July:
For anyone in the Caribbean who wants to participate in Beryl disaster relief.
From Noonsite:
https://www.noonsite.com/news/caribbean-hurricane-beryls-destructive-path-how-you-can-help/
From Doyle Guides:
The Marine & Yachting Association of Grenada (MAYAG) is coordinating with Grenada’s National Disaster Management Agency (NaDMA) on efforts. Yachts with donations can now bring them directly to Carriacou. After Ours / Frog’s restaurant in Tyrell Bay is being set up as a community center with a community kitchen and day care, and is accepting and organizing relief supplies for distribution.
Great care should be taken on approach and when anchoring as there is debris everywhere and sunken boats. See the sailors PDF map of Carriacou and Petite Martinique with nautical information created in 2020 here.
Get details on the Doyle Guides Hurricane Beryl Relief Efforts page
MAYAG is organizing volunteers, deliveries, and taking donations, which should be delivered to Gleans Garage on the Lagoon in Grenada. Email mayagadmin2@gmail.com if you would like to help transport donations to Carriacou.
If you would like assistance upon arrival in Grenada, please contact Caribbean Sailing
Association Board Member Brian Sylvester in Grenada at +1 (473) 535-2583. Also
reach out to NaDMA at +1-473-440-8391, pro@nadma.gd, https://www.facebook.com/nadmagnd/
From Hope Fleet and the Seven Seas Cruising Association:
Hope Fleet is collaborating with the Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA) to provide essential aid to the islands affected by Hurricane Beryl. Funds are currently being raised to procure supplies, which will be delivered by private vessels to those in need. This initiative leverages the unique capabilities of boats to access areas that may be inaccessible by air or commercial shipping. Hope Fleet and SSCA have a combined network of private boaters already in the vicinity ready to transport critical aid directly to affected areas. To make a donation or for boaters who wish to get involved, please visit https://hopefleet.org/hurricane-beryl.
Caribbean Compass will continue to provide updates on Beryl as it moves across the region. As we write this, Beryl is now hitting Jamaica and will make landfall on the Yucatan Peninsula later this week. Our thoughts are with those impacted by this storm. Please send any information or questions to editor@caribbeancompass.com
Links to more information
Statement by the OECS Director General on Hurricane Beryl
Trinidad & Tobago Meteorological Service
Barbados Government Infomation Service
Saint Lucia Meteorological Services
NOAA National Hurricane Center
We have gotten several requests for this article from 2004 when Hurricane Ivan hit Grenada
Please send any information or questions to editor@caribbeancompass.com
Images from 09:30 AST on July 1st, 2024
