By Gail Alexander, Basseterre/St Kitts
St Kitts prepares
for next tourist season
The St Kitts/Nevis hotel industry took a head-on 'hit' from Hurricane Georges in September, but it is still on target for the 1998-1999 tourist season.
Georges which ripped through the Eastern Caribbean in the early hours of September 21, packing winds of up to 145 mph, left the twin-island state of 36,000 reeling and in shambles.
When the winds cleared, five people were dead and the island suffered
more than (US)$402 million (EC$1.03 billion) in damages. St Kitts
Prime Minister Denzil Douglas said the disaster will set the twin-islands'
economy back for some time.
"We're down but not out," he said shortly after the
hurricane struck. At the same time, Douglas appealed for assistance
for the island from its private sector as well as regional neighbours.
"The public sector in St Kitts/Nevis can't do it alone,"
he stressed, "Georges visit had affected every single person
on the islands in some way. Who didn't lose their homes or part
of it, sustained water damage or was affected by the debris, or
lost their jobs."
Georges was the fourth such unwelcomed 'visitor' to St Kitts/Nevis
in the last 10 years. Hurricane Hugo arrived in 1989, but hit
neighbouring Antigua hardest among the eastern Caribbean island
chain.
Then came Luis and Marilyn in 1995. But Georges, Kittians agreed,
thoroughly "mashed up" their island reversing their
situation with Antigua. Barely anything was left untouched by
Georges' winds and the worst damage came during the hurricane's
second half.
Douglas said that 85 percent of the islands' houses were affected
and 25 percent was completely destroyed. Also, more than three
thousand persons were reported to be displaced. The general hospital
which was also damaged, was unable to accept patients and a number
of schools were smashed to rubble. The university, the Government
House, Basseterre Police station and just a few other buildings
were luckier.
Many homes had gaping holes in their roofs while most churches
lost their covering all together, as the debris hurled by Georges
anger forced their way through.
The country areas, in the north and east (from where the winds
came) were hardest hit. Low income earners who lived there were
among those who needed urgent help. Like other buildings, the
island's hotels in and around the capital, Basseterre, were all
affected by George's might. 
However, Douglas says hotels will still open for the 1999 season
before New Years Day. Some workers will be laid off temporarily
while the hotels are being repaired, he added.
The popular Jack Tar Hotel Village in exclusive Frigate Bay area
suffered extensive damages from the wind and flooding. A glass
atrium roof was blown off from the main building and structural
damage occurred in other places. Vegetation was also uprooted
or blown down, littering the compound.
Other tourism condominium facilities in Frigate Bay were also
affected but according to the owners, the Frigate Bay area was
still luckier than others. Electricity and telephone cables are
underground and power in some parts was restored within three
days after the hurricane, they said.
The home of the St Kitts Music Festival - Fort Thomas also suffered
damages, but the overall building remained intact. Ocean Terrace
Hotel on the towering heights overlooking Basseterre, was also
fortunate.
Not so lucky was the popular Fisherman's Wharf eatery. The cove,
buffeted by high winds and sea water easily succumbed to the hurricane's
force and was shattered to bits.
The island's Robert L. Bradshaw Airport, a facility which only
opened last year, was severely damaged. Georges made off with
parts of the roof, leaving gaping spaces, and flattened the control
Tower to the ground. However, it was back in operation within
two days of the hurricane.
The same could not be said of St Kitts' new cruise ship port,
Xante, which will be out of commission for some time. Its piers
were completely broken by pounding seas accompanying Georges'
visit.
An 8:pm to 6:am curfew which was enforced to prevent looting,
was lifted a week after the storm and most of the hotel repairs
were well underway. Douglas said St Kitts/Nevis' foreign exchange
reserves will be seriously affected as the harvest of the islands
main cash crop - sugar cane, will be slashed by 50 percent.
Government is offering assistance to low income earners for repairs
and a moratorium has been declared on mortgage payment to allow
citizens to utilise the funds elsewhere. He has also recruited
the help of the Opposition and has made broad appeals for the
situation to be handled in a unified effort - particularly where
Nevis is concerned.
Caricom chairman, Kenny Anthony and OECS chairman, Lester Bird
visited the islands to survey the damage and co-ordinate assistance
from the region.
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