The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

An Abaco resort operator yesterday said her property is unlikely to re-open until summer 2020 after it was “totalled” by Hurricane Dorian with “nothing left of the marina”.

Molly McIntosh, general manager of the Bluff House Beach Resort & Marina on Green Turtle Cay, said the absence of utilities and a workforce to assist with clean-up, repairs and restoration were among the major challenges faced by those seeking to rebuild.

“We got totalled,” she told Tribune Business. “There is nothing left of the marina. The rooms had a lot of water damage. There are a few challenges - there is a problem in hiring people. There is no one to hire to do work at this time.

“I have four guys now that I have re-hired to help with clean-up. There are huge trees and metal roofs and other debris littering the beach. They are cleaning up by hand but have made a lot of headway. The insurance company has not settled with us as yet. My owner does not know how to plan because he does not know how much to expect from the insurance company.”

Ms McIntosh then added: “The dump is burning and blowing right into my house. The stench is horrible. That’s the problem with burning all of that treated wood; they have a lot of chemicals in them and it makes a lot of toxic smell.

“The prime minister said that barge for the dump would be brought to the island the evening he came to speak to us at the Town Hall meeting. But we have not seen the barge yet and nothing else is being said about it.”

Dr Hubert A Minnis reaffirmed that the Abaco Cays would be provided with support for debris clearance and barge export at a press conference on post-Dorian clean up efforts held at the weekend.

However, Ms McIntosh said: “We don’t have electricity now. The generators we have running now are very expensive to run. Bahamas Power & Light are working slowly but surely from what I see.

“Some also have water in some places in town from what I have been told. I have not had water since before the storm. This makes it challenging to get work done. There is a charity called Water Mission on the island that is providing us with water.

“The lady that started Water Mission had a home in Green Turtle Cay. Her name is Molly Green. She passed a way some time ago but her husband has been keeping the charity going. They supply water to hard to reach places all over the world. We are so thankful for them.”

Desmond Bannister, minister of works, who is also responsible for BPL said in his address to Parliament on the Disaster Preparedness Bill that BPL has spent just over $1.6m on equipment and materials as teams work to fully restore electricity in Abaco and its cays following Hurricane Dorian. He also estimated that some 3,000 utility poles were lost as a result of the hurricane.

Mr Bannister added: “BPL, along with members of the Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation, are working together to quickly rebuild Abaco’s infrastructure and restore power in microgrid fashion until BPL is capable of rebuilding its entire network.

“More than 30 linesmen – including BPL and members of CARILEC – are on the ground in Abaco. Those 30 linesmen do not include BPL generation and support teams helping the rebuild effort.” The minister said Green Turtle Cay was likely be fully restored with electricity by mid-November.

Ms McIntosh, though, told Tribune Business she is not planning for her resort to be re-opened until summer 2020. “One of our restaurants is still available, the Tranquil Turtle Beach Bar,” she added. “We need some work to make the bar look better. We hope to have it opened in February.

“But our Ballyhoo Restaurant is totally destroyed. It seems like a tornado within Hurricane Dorian swept through the restaurant. We hope to have workers in during the reconstruction phase to be able to feed from the Tranquil Beach Bar. I think by the 14 or 15 of February we hope to have the bar open for customers.”

Ms McIntosh added: “We need solar power and to be able build up right and move forward anew. We also need to cut all of the red tape. If we get things done right people can come to Abaco, but we have to have things working right.”

“People don’t want to come if we are going to have rolling power cuts. A little investment can go a long way in helping the Government address the infrastructure needs. Let us put in something new and better. It will pay back in the long-run. As long as the economy remains strong in the US then Abaco stands to do well.”