By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

MORE than one tenth of the homes assessed by teams dispatched by the National Emergency Management Agency in Long Island have been rendered “completely destroyed” in the wake of Hurricane Joaquin.

According to a damage assessment report being compiled for NEMA, 35 of the 317 homes assessed by officials have been left uninhabitable, while a total of 117 have been classified as “substantially damaged” by the massive storm.

The report indicated that 159 of the 317 homes assessed to date received minor damage as a result of the storm, which made landfall some three and a half weeks ago.

When contacted by The Tribune for clarification on the report, island administrator Terrece Bootle-Bethel said the assessment has officially been completed, explaining that the assessment efforts have only been carried out on 75 per cent of the homes on the island.

She stated that while findings are still being compiled, earlier indicators show that as teams move further south on the island, the adverse effects of Hurricane Joaquin has been evident.

Mrs Bootle-Bethel explained that level one in the report refers to those homes that have sustained damage that can be readily corrected, damage along the lines of broken windows or minor roofing issues.

Those homes classified in the level three to four bracket, homes sustaining severe damage, are homes with issues that cannot be corrected right away and may need structural changes.

Additionally, level five constitutes those homes that have been destroyed, and cannot be repaired.

Based on those classifications, the hardest hit sections of the island have been the settlements of Dunmore and Roses –18 of the 35 “level five” homes were recorded in those two settlements.

Last Thursday, during a community meeting held in Simms, Long Island Mrs Bootle-Bethel recalled how she feared lives had been lost in Roses.

She said the night the storm made landfall, she received a call from a resident who she was unable to find that day.

“When she called me that night (Thursday) she said, ‘Administrator, you have to come and get me.’

“I said, ‘Ma’am, I put the word out for everyone to get to a shelter. I cannot jeopardize the police to come and get you.’” She called me back in an hour and said, ‘If you don’t come and get me, my children and I will die.’”

Mrs Bootle-Bethel added: “The last call I got from her was a scream: ‘You have to come and get me!’”

“I felt helpless,” she added. “When we were able to get satellite communication out, the first thing I heard was (a rumour) 30 dead in Long Island, eight confirmed. That set us on a hunting trip. We had to ride to Hard Bargain and walk three miles to Roses.”

“We walked because I said I need to see them myself. If they are dead I want to see that myself because I will never forget that scream that night.”

Mrs Bootle-Bethel said during the group’s three-mile walk, those who were feared dead walked towards her.

“I said, ‘God is so good’, because they were looking for water. All 11 of a family that was said to be dead were walking on the road coming towards us.”

As it relates to Dunmore, heavy flooding left most of the homes in the settlement under water for an extended period.

When The Tribune visited Long Island last week, flood waters continued to cut off access to the Hamilton’s settlement.

A boat used to transport residents between Petty’s and Hamilton’s was stationed between the two settlements.

Assessment teams are still working to reach the Ford’s settlement in south Long Island.

Last week, Prime Minister Perry Christie said based on information from the Department of Social Services, Hurricane Joaquin wiped out 413 homes in Long Island.

However, Mr Christie suggested that the numbers could change as teams continue to assess the damage to homes and provide assistance to impacted and displaced families.

Mr Christie has estimated that costs associated with damage as a result of Hurricane Joaquin are about $60m. This figure was expected to rise as the additional assessments came into the Ministry of Finance.

Long Island is one of five islands left devastated by the category-four storm.

Mr Christie has said that 227 houses were destroyed in San Salvador, 123 homes in Acklins, 50 houses in Crooked Island and 23 residences in Rum Cay.