Hurricane Beryl
On 1 July, Hurricane Beryl struck Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada, with maximum sustained winds of over 220 km/h. It made landfall on Grenada’s Carriacou Island as a category 4 storm, intensifying later to category 5. It is the first hurricane on record to have reached the highest level 5 so early in the year, though it later reverted to 4.
Royal aid for Beryl victims
5 July
The Prince and Princess of Wales made a private donation to support victims of Hurricane Beryl. Kensington Palace confirmed the royals are “closely” following the impact of the storm, as it peaked at category five winds of over 165 miles per hour, causing significant damage in the southeast Caribbean and killing at least seven people.
King Charles also made a “substantial” charitable donation to the ongoing relief efforts, and the Palace said he asked to be kept closely informed of the developing situation. He hopes to engage with regional leaders directly in the coming days to offer his support and sympathies.
Message from His Majesty King Charles
My family and I have been profoundly saddened to learn of the dreadful destruction caused by Hurricane Beryl across the Caribbean.
Above all, we send our heartfelt condolences to the friends and families of those who have so cruelly lost their lives.
I have seen the extraordinary spirit of resilience and solidarity that people across the Caribbean have shown in response to such destruction – a spirit which has been called upon too often – and so I also send my particular gratitude to the emergency services and volunteers who are supporting the rescue and recovery efforts.
At this most difficult of times, please know that our most special thoughts and prayers are with all those whose lives, livelihoods and property have been so utterly devastated.
UK Hurricane Beryl support package
5 July
A day after a new Labour government won the UK general election, Britain provided support for deployment of regional teams to assist the national disaster offices with emergency operations, relief and logistics management, telecommunication, security issues and sectoral assessments, following a request from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA),
Royal Navy patrol ship HMS Trent arrived in the Cayman Islands, a British Overseas Territory, to provide assistance to communities affected by Beryl. Two specialist FCDO Rapid Deployment Teams travelled to the region to provide consular assistance to British nationals, along with a procurement and logistics specialist to assist with the humanitarian effort.
The UK is committed to working with Caribbean countries to build resilience to natural disasters. The UK-Caribbean Infrastructure Fund invested £350 million in climate-resilient projects across the region, including ports, roads and water systems. The UK has invested in building preparedness and resilience of the region. This includes supporting development of Disaster Risk Finance strategies and investing in insurance initiatives to enable communities to recover more quickly.
EU donates €450,000 to hurricane aid
3 July
Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) reported
Some St Vincent Grenadine islands and Carriacou, Grenada, bore the brunt of Beryl force, after an aerial reconnaissance mission on July 2 to assess the damage. In Canouan, 100 per cent of the population of 12,600 suffered and 90 per cent of homes were extensively damaged or destroyed.
In Carriacou, home to approximately 6,081, the majority of displaced individuals sheltered in temporary accommodation following huge damage to homes and buildings.
This new funding is in addition to the over €2 million allocated this year for humanitarian aid and disaster preparedness in the Caribbean region.
EU commissioner for crisis management Janez Lenarčič said, “The EU stands ready to help other populations that might be affected in the next hours. All our response instruments, humanitarian aid and civil protection, will be mobilised if necessary.”
Caricom mobilises aid mission
July 2, 2024
As Caribbean islands brace for the impact of Hurricane Beryl or assess the damage it created, Guyana President and Chair of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Dr. Irfaan Ali, urged mobilisation of assistance and relief.
He made a passionate plea for regional unity and a holistic approach to the destructive Category 4 hurricane. “As Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), I express deep concern and continued anxiety over the passage of Hurricane Beryl through our region. Initial reports have indicated significant damage and destruction to infrastructure and private property in some territories. As this weather phenomenon roars through the Region, we must continue to brace ourselves against the effects of high winds, storm surges along coasts and heavy rainfall.”
In these challenging times, all citizens and the private sector of the region should coordinate closely with their governments and regional emergency response mechanisms in providing immediate support and relief to those affected by the hurricane. The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) is already working to mobilise and coordinate assistance and disaster relief as the storm sweeps the Windward Islands.
”This is a time for all of us as a regional community to stand together and extend our support to those impacted or likely to be impacted by Hurricane Beryl. Let us mobilise the necessary assistance and relief efforts in the true spirit of regional solidarity. Together, we can overcome the adversities posed by this hurricane and ensure the safety and well-being of all our peoples and communities.“
CDEMA Coordinating Unit (CU) and key partners stand ready to assist participating states as the region braces for the first major hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season. The Civil Defence Commission (CDC) of Guyana, is in collaboration with the CDEMA to ensure a coordinated and effective response. Hurricane Beryl brought high winds to St Vincent and the Grenadines, dislodging roofs.
CDEMA Executive Director, Elizabeth Riley and the United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Simon Springett co-chaired a Caribbean Development Partners Group (CDPG) meeting of over 166 partners from local, regional and international agencies, sharing plans in preparation for the hurricane.
Major stakeholders in attendance included the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Ralph Gonsalves; Prime Minister of Grenada, Dickon Mitchell; National Disaster Coordinators and Ministers who gave updates on activation of National Emergency Operation Centres, logistics, communication. relief and response to the levels of impact.
The CDEMA CU activated its Regional Coordination Plan on June 29, 2024, continues to monitor progress of Hurricane Beryl and remains committed to supporting affected countries.
GUYANA’S RESPONSE
The government mobilised a comprehensive emergency support operation to aid the afflicted, with priority. for Grenada where Beryl struck Carriacou. President Ali expressed solidarity and heartfelt sympathy to those impacted by the hurricane. “Our prayers and thoughts are with the people of the region.”
He emphasised that the regional private sector and other agencies must be fully mobilised to provide support at this time.
“I am closely coordinating with all affected countries in our region. We have activated a full emergency response team from Guyana to support all efforts.
We are mobilising for our first support mission, prioritising Grenada for tomorrow morning. Hurricane Beryl is still very active in the region and the coming days will be crucial in determining its path and the continued devastating impact it could have.”
The extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane made landfall with maximum sustained winds up to 150 mph, wreaking havoc with power outages and life-threatening storm surge flooding in St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Barbados and Tobago.
Considerable damage to infrastructure, residences and key services left many communities in desperate need of assistance. Hundreds of people were housed in hurricane shelters. Beryl became the Atlantic Basin’s earliest Category 4 storm, shattering Hurricane Dennis’ record on July 7, 2005.
Beryl is also the first Category 4 hurricane recorded in June. The Atlantic Hurricane Season runs from June 1 to November 30. Regional flights were postponed, as many of the major airports are closing . CARICOM’s 47th Regular Meeting of Heads of Government, scheduled for Grenada from 3-5 July, has been postponed.
Guyana to rush aid to Windward Islands
2 July 2024
St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves received a commitment from Guyana’s President, Irfaan Ali to rush building materials to Union Island, where Hurricane Beryl smashed over 90 percent of houses.
“In one case, the President of Guyana has indicated that he would send some supplies which are necessary immediately for construction especially in relation to housing.”
President Ali, CARICOM Chairman, said “we are mobilising for our first support mission, prioritising Grenada” for Tuesday morning. He was closely coordinating with all affected countries. “We have activated a full emergency response team from Guyana to support all efforts.” He urged the regional private sector and other agencies to be fully mobilised to provide support at this time.
The St Vincent leader said one person was killed by the “dangerous, devastating” category four tropical storm. In Union Island the Airport lost its roof . “Union Island has been devastated. The reports that I’ve received indicate that 90 percent of the houses have been severely damaged or destroyed.”
In terms of the scale of devastation, he said Mayreau and Canouan “would not be far behind” in contrast to Bequia and other northern Grenadines. In mainland St Vincent, houses, schools and other government buildings, churches and church schools have been “severely damaged or destroyed”.
As the National Emergency Management Organisation (NEMO) prepared to conduct a damage assessment of buildings and river and sea defences, he appealed to residents and businesses to participate in the reconstruction of the island. “We are at a point where we have to work together to rebuild and we have to start urgently“.
Union Island is 7.8 square kilometres with a population of about 3,000; the less than half square mile island of Mayreau is inhabited by about 300 persons. Canouan, a 7.60 square kilometre island is home to about 1,700 persons and 18 square kilometre Bequia has a population of over 5,000 .
Roofs of public buildings can be secured by known technology but entertainment has priority in CARICOM. Vincymas 2024, earmarked to be one of the largest, proceeded after Hurricane Beryl wrought chaos in St Vincent and the Grenadines and disrupted the Carnival.
Based on discussions with Vincymas and Cabinet, the Carnival Development Corporation (CDC) announced its decision to promote Vincymas from Saturday, July 6 to Tuesday, July 9. Stakeholders are in a unique position to leverage Vincymas to provide support, financial or in-kind, for hurricane victims.
The CDC says of significance to it are the optics of continuing with the festival, amidst widespread devastation of the Southern Grenadines. CDC considered the significant loss of revenue amidst the cancellation of flights and investments by stakeholders. As ever, style trumps substance.
Caribbean Development Bank (CDB)
Caribbean Development Bank to Accelerate Hurricane Recovery Efforts
July 9, 2024 , Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) Acting President Mr. Isaac Solomon, and CDB senior managers visited the archipelago for stakeholder outreach, information gathering and a first-hand look at the impact of Hurricane Beryl which made landfall in Grenada, St Vincent and the Grenadines and Barbados, classified as a category 4 hurricane.
The high-level delegation met Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves and government officials in Kingstown to discuss the initial support CDB can provide for response and recovery efforts. The Bank’s team received a briefing from the Prime Minister, Hon. Camillo Gonsalves, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Information Technology and CDB Governor for St. Vincent and the Grenadines; Ms. Michelle Forbes, Director of the National Emergency Management Organisation; and Mr. Edmond Jackson, Director-General of Finance and Planning.
The Prime Minister provided an in-depth update on the destruction, particularly on Union Island, Canouan, and Mayreau in the Grenadines, highlighting the severe impact on housing, agriculture, education and energy supply and dislocation of communities and households. He shared initial estimates of the number of citizens affected, indicating the social and economic challenges ahead, emphasising the need for psychosocial support, part of the Bank’s disaster response approach.
Responding, Mr. Solomon outlined immediate actions CDB will take to alleviate the effects on citizens and vital institutions including a support package. “CDB stands in solidarity with the people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines during this challenging time. Our commitment to supporting the recovery and rebuilding process is unwavering. We are here because we understand the urgent need for swift and effective recovery measures but beyond that, we will help to create stronger, more resilient communities that can withstand future challenges.”
The CDB delegation includes Mr. Ian Durant, Director of Economics; Mr. O’Reilly Lewis, Director of Projects (Ag); Ms. Camille Taylor, Head of Corporate Communications; Operations Officers Mr. Paul Saunders and Mr. Jude Regis and Mr. Cecil Harris, Program Manager for CDB Natural Disaster Management Projects in SVG.
. Discussions addressed long-term recovery efforts and potential collaboration with the Bank’s partner institutions to enhance resources for greater impact.
The CDB team visited Union Island and Canouan, which suffered widespread devastation of homes, schools, community spaces, public facilities and electricity and telecommunications services. They toured the windward side of the mainland, where education facilities sustained damage, including the Owia Government School and Early Childhood Centre, and the Calder Government School, where winds detached roofs and rains destroyed classroom furniture, equipment and teaching aids.
The delegation will also visit Grenada to discuss support for the recovery efforts after being severely battered by Beryl.
Canada relief for hurricane ravages
2024, 07/10
Canada is providing funds to assist Caribbean countries in the wake of the destruction caused by Hurricane Beryl
International Development Minister, Ahmed Hussen said that humanitarian partners will offer life-saving assistance, such as emergency food and nutrition services, protection and logistics services and ensure that humanitarian goods are dispatched and that humanitarian workers continue to respond to the crisis amid daunting challenges.
With climate-related natural disasters on the rise and global warming increasing tropical storms, Canada is “prepared to support people affected by severe weather crises. Canada is committed to working with partners around the world on global environmental sustainability and emergency preparedness to ensure a safer future for all.
With climate-related disasters like Hurricane Beryl causing catastrophic damage, Canada is supporting those most in need. Our initial response will go toward meeting the most immediate and urgent needs in the Caribbean region with emergency essentials like water, food and healthcare supplies. Our thoughts are with all those affected during these difficult times, and we continue to work closely with our partners to meet the evolving needs.”
Canada is sending relief supplies to Jamaica from its emergency stockpiles managed by the Canadian Red Cross.
CAD$500,000 (One Canada dollar=US$0.74 cents) will be allocated to the United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) for emergency food assistance and logistics services with CAD$160,000 being allocated to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies relief operations in response to its appeal for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada and Jamaica.
Canada is also deploying essential relief items to the Jamaica Red Cross valued at up to CAD$350,000. Ottawa is also providing CAD$200,000 to the Barbados-based Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) for e mobilization of regional deployment teams and provision of direct support to countries requiring immediate response.
Through the Build Back Equal project, Canada is contributing to UN Women and UN Population Fund efforts to distribute hygiene and dignity product kits in Grenada and in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Canada is supporting emergency humanitarian personnel deployment on the ground, including funding for the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination and the Canadian Red Cross.
Canada supports the region’s preparations for major disasters before they happen through the WFP’s Resilience and Enhanced Adaptability to Disasters in the Caribbean project.
Commonwealth complains
Aid advocate, Commonwealth secretary general, Patricia Scotland, joined fanatics for better climate finance support to vulnerable countries affected by hurricanes. She had been on her tax-funded way to the 20-country Caribbean Community (Caricom) summit in Grenada when a state of emergency was declared there.
“This is the new reality that we face. Once a rare occurrence, hurricanes are severely damaging small island economies with greater intensity and regularity. In 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated Dominica. In 2019, Dorian, was the most powerful hurricane to ever hit the Bahamas.
“The damage of these shocks is deepened by the lack of adequate financial support. Small island states, which have done the least to cause this climate crisis and have contributed only 1% of all global carbon dioxide emissions, struggle to unlock climate finance. In 2019, they had access to only $1.5bn out of the $100bn pledged to developing countries.”
Doppler Weather Radar: A precise weather warning tool
7 July
On July 6, Minister of Public Utilities Marvin Gonzales and Planning Minister Pennelope Beckles attended recommissioning of the Doppler Weather Radar in Brasso Venado, a unique site Outstanding Natural Beauty with breathtaking views at 250 metres above sea level.
The Doppler Weather Radar is a reliable, cost-effective system designed to operate continuously in remote areas without constant human involvement. It provides continuous, precise data for weather monitoring, forecasting and warning services within a 400-kilometre radius. Data is shared with the public, disaster preparedness authorities and regional meteorological services, to enhance readiness for potential weather events.
While the country was spared major damage in the destructive path of Hurricane Beryl, one of the more destructive hurricanes the region experienced, neighbouring Grenada, St Vincent and Barbados were crippled and Jamaica suffered significant loss.
The weather radar plays a critical role in strengthening ability to mitigate risks associated with hurricanes and tropical storms.
“This is but a well-planned and executed exercise.”
He praised the work in recommissioning the radar, which provides real-time data to the member states of the Caribbean Meteorological Organisation. Adverse events know no boundaries, and co-operation at a regional and international scale is essential.
The data collected will be shared with other islands, with the aim of equipping regional meteorological services to make more accurate weather predictions. This will help countries initiate risk mitigation strategies quickly.
Gonzales stressed the importance of risk management. Mismanaged risks can devastate lives, assets and economic stability, with the poor being hit the hardest. Challenges in managing risk, include resource and information constraints and cognitive and behavioural factors. A lack of tools to mitigate risk and social or economic externalities can undermine the ability to manage risk effectively.
“The unquantifiable, but yet absolutely critical, cost of these events is the emotional and psychological cost to citizens.”
Extensive damage by Hurricane Maria in 2017 amounted to 200 per cent of Dominica’s gross domestic product and he urged proactive policy approaches and advanced planning to address the effects of natural disasters, rather than relying solely on post-disaster responses.
Gonzales thanked the Trinidad and Tobago Meteorological Office for unstinting dedication to duty and service. In June, Director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Roger Pulwarty, said the region will experience an above-average hurricane season this year with an anticipated four to seven, three-five category hurricanes. . Scientific agencies anticipated a hurricane season of about 85 per cent which is above average. It includes 17-25 total named storms at over 39 miles per hour, 11 at 75 miles an hour higher and four-seven, three-five category hurricanes stronger than 110 miles an hour.
Pangaea, Beryl and Homo
5 July 2024
Hurricane Beryl wreaked havoc in the Caribbean Basin with maximum sustained wind speeds over 160mph (257km/h), the earliest category five Atlantic hurricane in records going back around 100 years. Hurricane Emily was a category five Atlantic hurricane on 16 July 2005. Category Five Hurricane Irma razed the .US Virgin Islands in September 2017
Graphics by Erwan Rivault
Hurricanes evolved in tropical seas offshore West Africa even before records began . Intense, low-pressure wind systems or cyclones are named once sustained winds reach 39mph (63km/h).
They become hurricanes when wind speeds exceed 74mph (119km/h), . Once maximum winds intensify to 111mph (179km/h), they receive major hurricane status. The causes of individual storms are complex, making it difficult to fully attribute specific cases to climate change but exceptionally high sea surface temperatures are a key reason why Hurricane Beryl was so powerful.
Hurricanes can be traced to Africa, where the seeds for their destructive power were first laid. They began as African Easterly Waves, disturbances high in the atmosphere above western Africa, huge kinks in the stream of air flowing across Africa from east to west.
The African Easterly Jet, is driven by large temperature difference between the enormous expanse of the Sahara Desert and the semi-arid Sahel savannah to its south. Spanning 11 countries in northern Africa, the man-made Sahara Desert, the largest hot desert, among the driest regions on earth, extends over 3.3 million square miles (8.5 million sq km). It produces a steady blast of hot, dry air into the atmosphere. Summer heat increases the differences between the hot, dry Sahara and the cooler, wetter Sahel. The more pronounced the temperature gradient, the stronger the jet stream.
Hot Saharan air rises several kilometres above the surface and turns southward to meet cooler air above the Sahel and the Gulf of Guinea. Warm air forced upwards by mountains in East Africa, Sudan and Ethiopia, creates disturbances in the African Easterly Jet that form wave patterns from north to south. Each wave can be around 2,500km (1,553 miles) across.
As this disturbed air flows over the continent, it can either intensify or weaken depending on the temperature and moisture of the land. This generates clusters of thunderstorms over west Africa as rotation of the Earth turns the air current westward to create a powerful jet at 15-20,000ft (4.5-6km) across the continent and into the eastern Atlantic Ocean.
Strong storms develop later in the season, after the sea surface heats in summer to at least 27C. Seas along Beryl’s path were warmer than this. Beryl is an example of rapid intensification from a tropical depression – with maximum sustained wind speeds of 38mph or less – to a major hurricane above 111mph.
Beryl strengthened in just 42 hours, the fastest from a tropical depression to an Atlantic hurricane in June or early July. Frequency and magnitude of rapid intensification events in the Atlantic has increased in recent decades.
Beryl set a precedent for a very active, dangerous hurricane season, which will impact the entire Atlantic basin, predicts The World Meteorological Organization.
In May, US weather agency Noaa warned an “extraordinary” Atlantic hurricane season could be in store, forecasting between four and seven major hurricanes – category three (111mph) or above – between June and November. On average, the Atlantic is hit by three major hurricanes a year.
Hurricane Beryl – Small Islands
2024, 07/18
Hurricane Beryl not only left a trail of death and destruction but reignited the debate on the role developed countries have and continue to play in warming the earth, resulting in severe storms like Beryl that took less than a week to become a category 5 hurricane.
Secretary General of the 15-member regional integration bloc, Caricom, Dr. Carla Barnett, said it has been a “frightening start” to what is forecast to be a very active hurricane season.
“The devastation to our region has brought sadness to everyone…the immediate focus has to be on restoring normality to our people and communities, and building resilience for the rest of this hurricane season, and beyond.”
In February this year, global temperature rise surpassed 1.5 degrees Celsius and prior to the start of the 2024 Atlantic Hurricane season, the World Meteorological Organisation (WTO) warned that this record could be smashed again this year, which will lead to the loss of more lives and livelihoods and place national systems and services under intense pressure.
Commonwealth Secretary General, Patricia Scotland claimed,“This pressure is disproportionately borne by Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Despite making up only three per cent of the world’s land area, SIDS are vital for the whole of humanity and the planet we share. They safeguard 11.5 per cent of the ocean’s exclusive economic zones, which include seven out of 10 coral hotspots and 20 per cent of all terrestrial bird, plant, and reptile species.”.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves, whose island of Union took a sever battering from the storm, said his message was simple. Dismissing United Nations Climate Change Conferences (COP) as mere talk shops, he complained, “For the major emitters of greenhouse gases, those who contribute most to global warning, you are getting a lot of talking, but you are not seeing a lot of action – as in making money available to small-island developing states and other vulnerable countries.”
Antigua and Barbuda, one of nine countries, including Vanuatu and Tuvalu, that successfully brought an action before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea last September, was pleased with the “historic opinion” rendered by the court, as the country prepared to host the fourth international conference on SIDS in May.
The court said emissions from fossil fuels and other planet-warming gases absorbed by the oceans count as marine pollution and that countries have an obligation to mitigate their effects on oceans. The countries had asked the Hamburg court to issue an opinion on whether carbon dioxide emissions absorbed by the oceans could be considered pollution, and if so, what obligations countries had to address the problem.
The court ruled in an expert opinion that “anthropogenic GHG emissions into the atmosphere constitute pollution of the marine environment” under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Prime Minister Gaston Browne told Media,
“It is certainly a historic opinion, one that will inform future action by SIDS and other countries that are concerned about climate change and the impact of climate change.”
The senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), Joie Chowdhury said, “For the first time, an international court has recognised that the fates of two global commons — the oceans and the atmosphere —are intertwined and imperiled by the climate crisis.”
Ocean ecosystems create half the oxygen humans breathe and limit global warming by absorbing much of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activities. However, increasing emissions can warm and acidify sea waters, harming marine life and ecosystems Even as the SIDS were basking in the court’s ruling, Beryl, described on some occasions as a “dangerous and monstrous” storm brought the Caribbean region back to reality.
UN Resident Coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Simon Springett, said the message from the SIDS conference in Antigua was a demand for climate justice.
“When we say climate justice, it links to …financing for both adaptation and mitigation.”
Grenada “has been trying for a very long time …to build some resilience and now this gets wiped out. These countries all have a very high GDP (gross domestic product) to debt ratio and reconstruction… does not get done on grant based financing and these governments are not able to take loans at concessional rates”.
UN Resident Co-ordinator for Jamaica, The Bahamas, Bermuda, The Cayman Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands, Dennis Zulu said that the vulnerability of the small island states had been reinforced at the SIDS conference , adding:
“the fact that most of them are deemed to be high income countries …dealing with reconstruction is obviously a challenge. If you have, as we are anticipating this year, a minimum of 20 hurricanes coming and this leads to huge devastation of infrastructure, the resources, I mean the …fiscal space these countries have is limited” in terms of being able to respond and react.
So as countries…like Barbados, where the Prime Minister is requesting the international architecture take into consideration the vulnerabilities of Caribbean states in their accessing of concessional grants is very important.
Barbados has since 2022, been pushing for the international community to adopt the Bridgetown Initiative that targets the financing problem by creating more sources from which developing countries can borrow to mitigate and recover from the climate crisis. Led by Prime Minister Mia Mottley, the Initiative outlines proposals to address specific challenges that countries vulnerable to climate change face “and that the international financial system is currently failing to solve.”
The initiative opened space for debate about the global economic and financial governance in the context of the climate emergency and an acknowledgement that major systemic changes are required for countries to escape their debt, development, and climate crises. The specific mechanism of a disaster clause represents a successful innovation on the part of Caribbean countries, building on the introduction of a “hurricane clause” by Grenada in 2015 and an outcome of its negotiation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Bridgetown proposes that an automatic debt suspension in an emergency be included in all lending but this needs to be applied to all debt, retroactively and across the board, in order to make a real difference.
Mottley claimed that climate funding available to SIDS amounted to “a drop compared to the financing for man made problems like war. The problem is that there is a serious disparity in the pricing of capital between the global north and the global south. We therefore have to start where we can make meaningful progress and we believe that is in the area of finance.”
Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre, St Lucia’s which was not as severely devastated as other Windward Islands, told citizens, while they had been spared the “worst for now…you never know when our turn will come.”
His Dominican counterpart, Roosevelt Skerrt said the truth of the matter is, many Caribbean people do not study climate change or think it impacts their lives.
“They think it is something politicians talk about at international gatherings that has no impact on them. Our lamentations and our advocacy to the developed world with respect to climate change, the frequency and the ferocity of these storms are manifesting themselves.. climate change is indeed an existential threat to our survival.
We are just spending money in the Caribbean responding to disasters. Money that should be spent on development, health and education and infrastructure, we basically have to keep replacing infrastructure and if you just keep replacing you will never get to the point that you want .”
Skerrit said at a time when every country has its own unique challenges, he tries not to get “upset…or angry at the developed world, but this is really unfair to us in this part of the world.”
Commitments for compensation by developed countries have not borne fruit and regional countries are forced to spend scarce resources every month in dealing with climate change events, including droughts and “we are no longer waiting for every year to prepare…for the hurricane season.”
Chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), Ambassador Fatumanava Dr Pa’Olelei Luteru, said:
“for decades we have been straining to ensure the world hears our calls for urgent, increased ambition on climate action. We warned that climate change impacts will only get worse. We pleaded with bigger countries to commit to the essential pathways so our world can limit global warming to 1.5C and avoid the most severe impacts of climate change. Yet, we continue to be sacrificed on the frontlines of a climate crisis we did not cause. Our sea temperatures grow warmer, encouraging storms to strengthen at alarming speed and increasing the dire threat to our developing countries. The increased danger is evident for the world to see.”
The bloc of 39 small island and low-lying coastal developing states said it refuses to be the sacrificial lambs paying the price for industrialised countries’ obsession with fossil fuel proliferation.
“If the world does not stand with SIDS now, it is only a matter of time before we are all lost.“
The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) activated its Regional Response Mechanism (RRM), mobilising resources such as personnel, equipment and financial assistance for territories most severely affected by the storm. Through the RRM, spearheaded by the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), personnel are on the ground in impacted territories making physical and social needs assessments to effectively support coordination of the first line response. CDB’s acting president, Isaac Solomon said,
“We are committed to providing immediate and effective support to the communities affected by Hurricane Beryl.”
The Antigua and Barbuda government said it would make a case at the COP 29 conference in November in Azerbaijan, for the Loss and Damage Fund to be put into immediate effect in light of the devastation caused by Hurricane Beryl to multiple Caribbean countries. Prime Minister Browne said,
“When we go to Azerbaijan in November for the next COP meeting, we will be pushing hard for the capitalization and the operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund. Additionally, one recommendation that we will be making to all SIDS is for them to set up a Disaster Contingency Fund to be capitalised by proceeds of the Loss and Damage Fund to be replenished from time to time. We should not be in the situation where we have these pledging conferences and trying to determine where we are going to get resources from to recover.”
The Loss and Damage Fund was designed to provide crucial support to vulnerable nations facing the brunt of climate-related challenges. Its scope includes human mobility and countries, communities and organizations can apply for money under the Fund to meet mobility needs. In the decade between 2012 and 2022, the region registered 5.3 million new internal displacements caused by disasters. During COP 28, the European Union, Japan, Norway, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the United States announced pledges to the Loss and Damage Fund,
As of January this year, total commitments have amounted to US$661 million.
Outgoing Caricom chairman, Guyana’s President, Dr. Irfaan Ali said Hurricane Beryl severely impacted the region’s agricultural sector and could affect the regional plan to reduce the food import bill by 25 per cent by 2025.
“The initial assessment is heart-wrenching to our farmers, the government and the people of these countries, because of the tremendous investment, policy commitment and budget support for the agricultural sector since 2020.
“The investment in infrastructure, water systems, technology, crop variety, farm support, and farm-to-market infrastructure, many countries would have lost all of these investments.”
Initial assessment of the impact of Beryl on the agricultural sector including the aquaculture sector “not only shows that we lost years of hard work and investment but the immediate damages to infrastructure, crops and livelihoods from the agricultural and fisheries sectors, is in the tens of millions of dollars, that’s a desktop initial review.
Grenada, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Jamaica, St Lucia and Barbados that were all affected by the storm “were on track mostly in achieving the 25 by 2025 targets set by themselves.”
An initial assessment is “sad” and Hurricane Beryl in some instances damaged or completely wiped out the agricultural sector.
“So not only is the initial investment and cost of damage concerning to me as lead head in agriculture but to me it is also the long-term investment cost to rebuild, the infrastructure, to find resources, to recapitalise the farmers…As you know most farmers and fisherfolk are not insured, a lot of the crops damaged are long term crops also, seven years duration to maturity, to get high yielding variety, to get intercropping in place whilst reinvestment is placed in those long term crops.”
There are a lot of short-medium and long-term issues in the agricultural sector in the region that must be addressed in a comprehensive way. He said assistance would be sought from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture and and other institutions. Ali lamented,
“I am very concerned also that this is only the beginning of this hurricane season and we have already seen such a major setback, in the totality of the economies of these countries but specifically on the area I have responsibility for… I know the tremendous improvement, investment and goodwill that this sector received from the government and farmers, as a result of activism and the strong work by different government and ministries and farmers, there has been a renewed vigour in increasing the agricultural output in all of these islands.”
Japan donates emergency relief to St Vincent & the Grenadines
2024, 07/13
The Government of Japan, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), donated emergency relief supplies, tents, sleeping pads, polyethylene tanks, to St Vincent and the Grenadines in response to the catastrophic damage caused by Hurricane Beryl.
The ceremony was attended by officials including Mr. Anthony Regisford, Honorary Consul of Japan in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Sandy Peters-Phillips, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines expressed gratitude for speedy assistance from the Government of Japan.
Nelson Stoddard, Deputy Director, National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO), emphasized that the supplies would be delivered promptly to southern districts, which were severely damaged .
In response, Mr. Ichiro Mimura of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Saint Lucia Office and Naoki Saito, Second Secretary from the Embassy of Japan in Trinidad and Tobago, conveyed their wishes for a speedy recovery and hoped that the aid supplies would bring much-needed relief to the citizens adversely affected by the disaster.
The emergency supplies were provided from a humanitarian perspective and in light of the longstanding friendship between Japan and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Japan will continue to provide assistance to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and neighbouring countries affected by Hurricane Beryl.