By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A direct hit from Hurricane Irma will push the southern Family Islands “further into the economic abyss”, a Chamber of Commerce executive warned yesterday.

Roderick Simms, who heads the Chamber’s Family Islands division, told Tribune Business that the already-troubled economy in the southern Bahamas was still recovering from Hurricane Joaquin’s devastating impact of two years ago.

With Irma expected to be of similar Category Four magnitude, Mr Simms expressed concern that the storm could exacerbate existing “depressed” conditions - such as the ‘brain drain’ caused by residents leaving in search of better job opportunities elsewhere.

Mr Simms, who has just returned to Nassau from Mayaguana, where storm preparations have already begun, said: “At this point in our country’s history, I don’t think another hurricane will be very good for us.

“We have so much riding on Moody’s, the Budget, and this could throw us off our path to regaining financial strength. A hurricane will not go very well for us.”

Hurricane Matthew, which last year struck both New Providence and Freeport, the Bahamas’ two major economic centres, inflicted an estimated $600 million worth of damage.

That storm arrived exactly one year after Hurricane Joaquin, also of Category Four strength, devastated the southern Bahamas by creating $100 million in damages itself.

The islands most heavily impacted by Joaquin were Acklins, Crooked Island, Long Island, Rum Cay and San Salvador, and Irma - with meteorologists struggling to forecast a consistent future track for the storm - is likely to pass perilously close to these locations.

Mr Simms said the Joaquin recovery process had been “very slow”, with many businesses still struggling to return to sustainable profitability in depressed economies that were continuing to lose population.

“The southern island economies are very challenged, and there is not much activity happening,” he told Tribune Business. “There is a brain drain happening, and people are leaving the islands because there are not many opportunities to have gainful employment.

“A hurricane of this magnitude, on top of these existing components, could truly devastate the islands and push more people to start leaving. For healthy economies, you need people.”

Mr Simms said reduced Family Island populations also made it harder for the Government to justify multi-million dollar upgrades to improve and maintain infrastructure, especially as there was little prospect of a return for taxpayers.

“It’s of great concern to me that the southern island economies are very challenged, and their population numbers are very low,” he reiterated.

“Any devastation, be it natural or otherwise, pushes them further into the economic abyss, and we have to help mitigate that and keep those islands in consideration. The people who live there love those islands, and go through daily challenges to be there.”

Mr Simms said the recovery of businesses and commerce on the Joaquin-ravaged islands had been further delayed by the lack of insurance penetration in the Family Islands.

“What we found is that most of the island businesses do not have insurance,” he added. “They were already struggling, and many businesses had already dropped it or didn’t have insurance prior to the hurricane, as it can be expensive in the islands.”

Mr Simms said this had left businesses impacted by Joaquin reliant on their own resources; those of their friends and family; and the joint Chamber-Rotary relief fund for financing to get themselves back into operation.

“Recovery is very slow,” he conceded, “and I think businesses and residents are doing the best they can. Many businesses are still struggling because they’re living in a depressed economy where every dollar counts, and they have to be frugal with it.”

The Chamber executive added that Family Island entrepreneurs would be unable to rely on friends and family as much if Irma hits, given that their resources had already been strained by Joaquin.

He emphasised, though, that Mayaguana residents and businesses were taking Irma’s impending approach very seriously, with the island’s police chief and administrator having already held a meeting to ensure all were prepared.

Mr Simms said Hurricane Joaquin had caught numerous Family Island residents “off guard”, and a failure to properly prepare had jeopardised residents’ lives, plus the security of business and residential property.

“Preparation is happening,” he added of what he had personally witnessed on Mayaguana. “People are taking it seriously because of past hurricanes. Everyone is watching it and paying close attention. They’re not taking it lightly.

“Mr Earnel Brown of the Baycaner Beach Resort has already canvassed the island, helping those who cannot help themselves, working closely with the administrator and police chief.”

Mr Simms told Tribune Business that Mayaguana was also experiencing “a host of mail boat issues”, relating to an irregular calling schedule that was frustrating businesses awaiting freight deliveries.

He added that residents were also complaining that mail boat operators were “not following” the Government’s tariff schedule, and instead charging what they pleased.

The Chamber executive said these issues were exacerbating an already “sluggish economy” on the island, and access issues relating to the fact Mayaguana receives flights just twice weekly - on Mondays and Fridays.