Being in Dominica during Hurricane Maria September 18th, 2017 Part 3

There was the sense of relief every time you met someone you knew, they extended a hug. And that is expected after the death toll had risen. Some Dominicans showed expressed that they had to learn to walk again, since they had done so much driving in the pass. Others remained self-centered as they drove on the roads and ignored elderly persons going in their direction. They were either too angry that they had lost pride possessions and I guess dignity or they just had not found it in their hearts to give a lending hand.

Obviously, jobs were lost and persons were overwhelmed, not only by the damage incurred, but the state of the country. Children were forced to go back to board games and or just being bored, because there was no electricity and therefore no electronic games could be played. Business was so on a hold, because one was not able to send out or receive emails, check with their social media friends and associates or even be online. That because a serious issue for the younger generation who were used to the television or their iPad and tablets. Maria had cause a total transformation in time. Like a time machine, aspects of the lives of many post Baby Boomers had gone 25 years.  How many days would it take to restore water and electricity? That was a mystery, so persons were back in the rivers taking a bath or doing laundry. Some banks had sustained more damage than others, so they were on operational for a while. But even with money, there was nothing you could have bought other than petrol. As soon as petrol became available, there were the long lines of vehicles and persons with all forms and sizes of contain waiting to purchase fuel for the generators or vehicles. I stayed in line on the first Sunday after the storm, parked at a petrol station from 6:30 am to 10:45, only to get EC$10.00 gas in the vehicle and had a friend purchase $25.00 in a container.  Many who experienced Hurricane David were making comparisons to Maria, saying she came to us with 220 mile winds. The island’s economy had taken a backlash and there was no more talk about Hurricane Irma and the islands and territories it had damaged. The focus was on Dominica and more military helicopters came in to airlift persons from various parts of the island, because they had no other means of access or that they were being flown off island.  Press Conferences were aired, featuring the Prime Minister of Dominica requesting assistance. We had military personel from the region, the British Isles and Venezuela. All here with one purpose, to protect lives and property, to provide relief in one way or another. WhatsApp made its reentry on September 26th on my phone.  The vehicle I drove had not sustained any damage, so once my rod was cleared days after, I was able to go hunting for water. In the hot blazing sun with no trees for shade, I developed a sun burn on my forehead and upper back. New friendships were created along the way, as we embraced new faces, local and foreign.  There was time to reflect and think of possible future endeavors. Ration was now the way of feeding one self, and water had become established itself as the blue gold. I had never seen so many brands of bottled water in my lifetime. Everyone was struggling with the water issue and we were constantly reminded not to use the river water sine there was a fear that dead animals, sewage and even the possibility of human remains may be in the water unseen.

Every chance that I got to visit the seaport to check on possible flights out was a challenge, with the number of persons living the island by Ferry to nearby islands, Martinique and Guadeloupe, some staying on the French islands, while others made connections to further locations like St. Lucia and Barbados. Because of the passing of Hurricane Irma previously, access through St. Thomas, St. Marteen and Puerto Rico were limited to only their nationals. So persons had to go south first to get to the Northern Islands, even as close as Antigua. Funerals were happening almost every day, not necessarily with the ceremony, since most churches were damaged.

I discovered that all the debris and sand, galvanize and other objects were transported to the Goodwill Savanah in front the Goodwill school. I hoped it was temporary, though the school has sustained damages also.

As the days passed by, we counted them. There remained the question as to when will we have water flowing from our taps, when will we have electricity in our homes so that life could return to normal for us and our children. Boat loads of persons were leaving and we had reached the ten thousand plus who had left. The sound of helicopters overhead had decreased, but the anger of the remaining residents had increased, as persons were complaining that they were not getting supplies, and that only a selected few were getting the ration that was meant for everyone. There were expressions of victimization and selfishness, even among those in high authority. Me, I was not surprised, because I always the Dominica motto. Me, Myself and I. 

The emergence of more mud and garbage from basements, business places and homes was no unusual site. Basically, everyone in the path of the river was affected and while I knew we were not prepared for such devastation, I kept asking myself if we would ever learn and do things better. I wondered if home builders and contractors would be now required to be certified after rigorous training before being consider a contract to build any structure. I wondered if persons would have more love for each other. The nice thing though is the fact that many families, former friends, ex boyfriends and girlfriends and neighbors had either reunited or created a greater bond. We learnt how the RSS (Regional Security Service) was a great idea in time of disaster to bring about law and order. I believe our people in high office learnt that it was not always a day at the air-conditioned office, but a time to get dirty, worry about your house that lost its roof or your family members that were affected and yet still deal with the needs of your constituents. I know that politicians were placed under that giant microscope, not only by the local population, but the entire world and the organizations that came in to assist. It was a test of time. It was a time to mark the report card of good and effective Governance.

As the days went by, persons were beginning to feel less stressed. The lack of electric power prolonged the State of Emergency and hence the Curfew. I was not sure what was happening and in what order, but the streets, yet very dusty, were cleaned of the majority of the garbage. The stench of rotten meat and food stuff pierced the air, as persons wore face mask, a new fleet of medical faces. As I took perch from my hilltop residence, I saw the dots of blue tarpaulins on many houses, while some were just skeletons of wooden rafters. The rain had poured for 1 day and a half, and I hopes that would have cleared the dusty streets, but in different, I found that it created more mud. I watched in awe as drivers had to be told that roads were closed, even though barriers were set up and that demonstrated how lazy out population had become. But not just lazy, Very lawless. Common sense was overcome by selfishness and the disregard for law and order. But then again, remember the looting that took place. We were all asking who was to blame. 

Dominica was now a country with an uncertain future for many. Those who remained were just counting time for their departure, while others wondered if the rebuilding process would ever become a reality. Some had lost all hope and continued saying the worse was ahead. I tried to be optimistic, because I too was at a lost.

One month and 2 days later. Young men were still trying to loot business places, but the RSS foreign assistance had paid off and many were caught red-handed. The nights were either very windy or very hot, all depending on the weather pattern. The sound of electric portable generators had increased and darkness among certain communities was lessened. High school students, mainly 5th and 6th formers were back in the class room and out of their civilized culture of tables, laptops and computers. Persons like me who did business outside Dominica; I had the challenge of not having electricity, so I could hardly work. And while I spent my days at the Financial Center, I felt very nonproductive, since the internet service was very unreliable. Persons were still lining up for hours waiting for the opening of Money Gram office, local banks, the few food stores and the charging of phones had now become a fledging business at US$1.00 per charge and almost US$2.00 for laptops. The price of food had risen, barbers had increased the prices and some shops and restaurants had increased the prices on drinks and food. Their reason being supply and demand or the cost of fuel to run the generators which made absolutely no sense.  Communication by telephone had become very difficult, since WhatsApp was either very slow or non-accessible, so we had to revert to making long distance call. That was a bomber. Thanks though, the long lines at the gas stations had decreased and that somewhat reduced the long traffic congestions and road rage. But within all that, there was the banging of dominoes during the night and children playing hide and seek and other games during the day. Technology was given a break. Insurance assessors and banks were busy trying to accumulate data for their head offices, while carpenters were hammering away on roof tops and making repairs. Huge tippers and dozers were seen every where hauling stuff and dust was at every mouth opening.

The clean-up continue with the challenges, since motorist were driving around with no sense of reasoning. And all I saw was the result of disaster, the resilience of some people, the mass evacuation, the unknown future and the slow progress to reality which I was told would take 24 months to get the island back to normality. I had no comment but to say “Thank God for his mercies. This was a life experience for the population. I say that you to all who cane to assist in one way or the other, from day one after the storm. Without your assistance and supervision and consultancy, the entire situation would have been worse. I assisted in my way when called upon by the local hotel association to write a report and do research. 

Where does Dominica go from here on is left to be seen.