The Tribune

By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT

and DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Staff Reporters

ACCORDING to Lisa Benton, a Bahamian living in Barbados, “day turned into night” when ashes from La Soufrière volcano eruption on St Vincent descended on Barbados.

La Soufrière is an active volcano on St Vincent in St Vincent and the Grenadines. It is the highest peak on that island and has had several recorded explosive eruptions since 1718. Three eruptions were recorded on Friday. Prior to this the last explosion was in 1979.

The volcano is said to have shot up some eight kilometres (4.97 miles) of lava into the skies when it erupted on Friday.

Ms Benton, who has lived in St James, Barbados for the past 15 years, said it was like a horror movie.

“We were warned to stay inside,” she said. “I am a curious person so I went outside. It was like a horror movie. I watched the day time sky turn black as night from the ash. That frightened the heck out of me and I ran back inside. My husband was furious because he told me to stay inside from the beginning.

“I started to cough a lot and then I came inside. It was really scary watching the dark come. Like the apocalypse! I could hear people screaming from their houses. I guess they didn’t know what to expect next and all of it really frightened them.”

Barbados is 118 miles away from St Vincent and lies to the west of that island.

A warning from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency said: “Barbadians have been urged to stay indoors as thick plumes of volcanic ash move through the atmosphere.”

Ms Benton continued: “The scary thing is that a lot of people don’t realise that once water or rain gets on this ash and it dries, it turns into a cement type substance … hard as rock. So imagine everyone’s roof and cars. This is so sad. My daughters were terrified. I tried to cover the cars with sheets but it wasn’t working. No one wanted to come outside to help me.

“The other issue is that my husband is now wondering if our car and house insurers will compensate us for the damage. We can hear the roof literally creaking under the weight of what is on it. The good thing is that we are safe, I guess.”

Another Bahamian living in Barbados told The Tribune that they began experiencing some hazy and dusty conditions on Friday. By Saturday morning, conditions had worsened. 

“When I woke up Saturday morning, it was bright, but then around 9am it got really dark and all the lights on the compound where I live came on even though it was nine in the morning when there should be bright sunlight,” the resident, who did not want to be named, said. “We have to stay indoors; it just looks like everything is abandoned.

“You can actually see the ash on your hands when you go outside, falling like little spits of rain. So, we have to be really careful – not only are we wearing our masks for COVID but because of the ash in the air that is coming from St Vincent,” she said.

The Bahamian has lived in Barbados for a number of years said it is the first time she has ever experienced anything like this in her life. “Around one o’clock in the afternoon, it looked like it was dusk outside,” she recalled.

At her residential compound in St Peters, the Bahamian educator had woken up to find ash on her floors and countertops after leaving a window open.

“Right now, it is very hazy, and you can’t see in front of you; there are dark clouds, and it is really dusty,” she said, describing the conditions she saw as of 3pm on Saturday. “It is really heavy now. But every so often there is a time when it clears up and it is light and bright, and when another eruption happens the ash comes over again with the wind. Everybody is on lockdown in their homes because of the ash and our doors and windows are closed.”

Certain parts of St Vincent had to be evacuated. A strong stench of sulphur swept that island on Saturday.

“All I’m asking of everybody is to be calm,” St Vincent Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves told reporters during a visit to a shelter that housed residents who had to be evacuated following the eruption. The water supply had also been cut off in many areas, with almost 3,200 people spending the night in shelters.

The Office of the Prime Minister released a statement advising Bahamians that Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has spoken with Prime Minister Gonsalves.

The statement read: “Prime Minister Minnis offered the support of the people and government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas to the government and people of St Vincent and the Grenadines as a result of the ongoing eruptions at La Soufriere volcano.

“Prime Minister Minnis recalled the support of the Caribbean Community during Hurricane Dorian. He expressed full solidarity with the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines during this difficult time. Prime Minister Minnis also spoke with Mia Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados. Ash clouds from the eruptions have drifted over Barbados. Prime Minister Minnis also offered the support of the people and government of The Bahamas to Barbados.”

Senator Fred Mitchell, chairman of the Progressive Liberal Party, also weighed in, asking Bahamians to pray for their CARICOM neighbour.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the government and people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines as they face another huge environmental, economic, social and humanitarian crisis with the threat of volcanic activities,” he said in a statement. 

In a post on Facebook, Prime Minister Gonsalves said they are faced with massive clean-up on their hands.

“Of the 13 million cubic metres of material which have formed, approximately the volume, it has been blown away, and new material is also coming up from the volcano. But fortunately, a lot of the material has gone in the sea, but a lot has reached Barbados, and we don’t know how long this spewing is going to take place.

“The seismologist doesn’t know. They are working and are collecting samples and through their testing, they will be able to give us an indication as to what do they think. It is not a precise science when doing these prognoses. So, this cleaning up is going to be massive as you can see already. The weight and nature of this, catching the roofs, windows, and doors, it is getting inside the houses. It is a very serious problem,” Dr Gonsalves said.