Repairs will take millions – Dominican PM
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Repairs will take millions – Dominican PM |
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Caribbean Net News, November 22, 2004 - Dominica's Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit, says that, although he cannot call a "round" figure as yet, it is going to take millions of dollars to repair the damage done to his country by the earthquake which shook the 289.9-square mile island at about 7:40 on Sunday morning. Dominica was the epicentre of Sunday’s earthquake. Speaking in an exclusive interview with Caribbean Net News following a lengthy meeting with emergency services officials Monday, the Dominican leader said many individuals have had to evacuate their homes as a result of the severe structural damage done to many buildings and dwelling places. "I can tell you that we were forced to move the patients from the Portsmouth Hospital into another building and we are now awaiting word from our engineers to see if we will have to demolish that building and build a news hospital. “Even though the people of Dominica are settling down and endeavouring to get their lives back to normal again, the situation is indeed serious and, from what I have seen, it is going to take millions of dollars to repair the damaged areas." Skerrit said that there were over 18 landslides that has caused serious problems with the road network and "there is one village that has been totally cut off from the rest of the country and there is also another village called Grand Fonds that has been locked in since last week Thursday," he said, adding there are over two and a half dozen severely damaged building, including three damaged churches. Skerrit said his government has received assistance from the Barbados-based Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) and they will be using a helicopter from the Barbados military to airlift food packages and aid supplies to the residents in those areas that have been cut off from the rest of the country. Meanwhile, follow-up telephone contact with some of the southern Caribbean islands revealed that one person died on the French-speaking Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. Authorities in Basse-Terre told Caribbean Net News that a three-year-old boy died as result of being crushed when the side wall of his house collapsed. His mother and sister escaped with injuries. The incident is the only known fatality thus far and took place in Trois-Rivieres, located on Guadeloupe's southern corridor.
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