Ministerial Statement on the passage of Hurricane Beryl by Minister of Home Affairs and Information, Wilfred Abrahams.
Mr. Speaker
Honourable Members,
The last two weeks have been life changing for many in the Caribbean and for us here at home in Barbados. During this period, we watched and tracked the development of the second tropical depression for this Atlantic hurricane season as it went from a depression to the second named storm, to a hurricane, to the most powerful weather system in history to develop in the month of June.
The storm went from a Category 2 hurricane to a Category 3 with the projection for it to be Category 4 strength before the eye passed to the south of Barbados. We knew we were going to be seriously affected; it was a matter of when and how hard.
The context of our experience must be considered against the fact that 12 days ago almost all models and projections were pointing to a near direct hit on Barbados and it was literally within the last 72 hours before impact that the system jogged or wobbled twice to take its track farther south, away from Barbados. Instead it set on course for Grenada, Cariacou and Petit Martinique and St Vincent and the Grenadines.
At this point, I wish to pause and thank the Barbados Meteorological Services for its sterling work over the last few years and particularly in its monitoring of Hurricane Beryl. We all know Director Sabu Best, who has undertaken much innovation and led the MET Office with distinction. Behind the scenes he is ably supported by a strong team of meteorologists and administrative and support personnel, who are the lifeblood of the department.
What the majority of Barbadians do not know is that we were receiving reports from the MET Service literally every hour over the 48 hours preceding the storm and almost every 15 minutes during the actual passage. This level of commitment and dedication is to be appreciated and applauded, and I wish the record of this Parliament to reflect our appreciation.
The National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC)
The National Emergency Operations Centre was stood up on the night of Sunday of 30th June, 2024 to manage the national response to the passage of Beryl before the effective National Shutdown and the NEOC remained in place until the post event situation was stabilized and under control.
The NEOC comprises representatives from key organizations in Barbados, both Governmental and Private Sector. Its task is to receive all information and reports, collate the information and then make the decisions that keep the country safe. The organisations that were represented in the NEOC during the passage of Beryl were:
To read the full Ministerial Statement, you may download it by clicking here.