Good Luck Cayman Islands

[GlenandVal]

Cayman Islands suffer 'catastrophic damage'

 

Hurricane Ivan is shown in this NOAA satellite image released September 12, 2004

 

Monday, September 13, 2004

At 2 am local time Monday, as telecommunications improve, at least temporarily, we are now able to provide a preliminary report on the impact of Hurricane Ivan on Grand Cayman, which has been described as ‘catastrophic’.

 

There have been unofficial and unconfirmed reports of some deaths, but no further details are known at this time. There have also been reports of looting taking place along Eastern Avenue in George Town.

 

A huge surge of water is said to have come from the North Sound along the aptly named North Sound Road and through George Town, to meet a similar surge from South Sound travelling in the opposite direction along Walker’s Road.

 

It is to be expected that the high-end houses along South Sound and in the South Church Street/Webster’s Estates area would have been severely affected by the tidal surge and heavy seas.

 

At one point the entire island seemed to be swamped by a tidal surge that could have been up to 15 or even 20 feet high.

 

Trees have been blown down or, if left standing, have been completely defoliated. A great many roofs have been blown off, including that of the Islay Conolly Hall at John Gray High School, which was being used as a hurricane shelter.

 

A large number of power lines are down and CUC is starting on a preliminary damage assessment.

 

There have been reports of some damage to the hospital, along with flooding of the Government Administration Building.

 

Supermarkets are hoping to open Monday, despite some having suffered significant damage. Gas stations were also reporting some heavy damage.

 

On a private note, the glass doors at Cayman Net News thankfully resisted the worst of the flooding, even though at times it was like looking at an aquarium (complete with tadpoles) as the water rose some three feet outside the glass.

 

Further reports will be published as circumstances and communications permit.

[GlenandVal]

http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?ei=ISO-8859-1&c=news_photos&p=Grand+Cayman

 

pictures of G C saw it from RCCL list

[MizzouMary]

Here's some photos of the damage to Grand Cayman. :(

 

http://news.search.yahoo.com/search/news/?ei=ISO-8859-1&c=news_photos&p=Grand+Cayman

[QTPieRye]

Originally posted by Silverval...."The Government is working to ensure continuity in the Islands' financial services industry and will aim for the tourism sector to be back in business as soon as possible."

 

I am not trying to offend anyone here and certainly am not trying to take away the seriousness of the devasation caused by Hurricane Ivan.... does anyone know when the tourism sector is expected to be back in business? Does as soon as possible mean days? weeks? months? Obviously, the lack of tourists and cruise ships will have a significant negative impact on businesses in the Caymans... Has anyone heard how the port is?

[prairie girl]

The street where you walk out to from your tender is Church Street. There is no "Church Street" left for you to walk out on.

 

It will be days before we will be able to telephone our friends and family from here. It will be weeks before power is restored fully to the Island. It will be weeks before water and sewer services are restored to the residents. It would be therefore reasonable to assume that it will be weeks and/or months before a new port is built and cruiseship passengers be permitted on the Island.

 

I am certain that the Cayman Government and its Tourism Department will want to insist that the Island is ready for its residents before tourism commences.

 

Sandy

[sstaarzz]

Hi

You mentioned there is no more Church Street...

We are due to arrive in Grand Cayman on November 3 and we booked a snorkel/stingray tour with Native Ways...

Is it safe to assume then that our ship will not dock in Grand Cayman nor will we get to go on our tour?

This is our first cruise...

Yes, my heart is with the people who suffered greatly in Grand Cayman and Jamaica, however, these are also the ports that I have booked tours in so I am also concerned as to what will happen...

I also have a tour booked in Cozumel.. was that area hit with the hurricane too?

[prairie girl]

I suspect that your port of call to the Cayman Islands will be substituted and your itinerary will be changed. Your cruise line will provide this information for you as you approach your departure. You would not want to see Grand Cayman in such a saddened state.

 

Please remember that every nail, every sheet of plywood, every glass of milk, every sheet of toilet paper has to come on to the Island from somewhere. The rebuilding process will take some time as all materials will have to be brought in.

 

If you booked your shore excursion privately (that is not through the cruise line), I strongly urge you NOT to contact anyone on Grand Cayman for a couple of weeks. There is currently no direct telephone service on Grand Cayman--it is very hit and miss even with cellular calls. There is currently no power or water as well. To burden them with a change in a shore excursions would add unnecessary stress and burdens on people dealing with a disaster.

 

Any reputable company will refund your money. It's pretty hard to get to Stingray City without a boat or catamaran to get you there and for some of the operators they don't even know what state their vessels are in or even where their vessels are.

 

Sandy

[NinaCO]

Hi sstaarzz,

 

I'm planning to be in Grand Cayman at about the same time. But, I won't be surprised if the ship skips the port, and/or Mo Bay (Jamaica). Thankfully, Cozumel wasn't directly hit by Ivan.

 

There's no word yet on when Grand Cayman and Jamaica will be ready for tourists. I'm sure that providing shelter, food, and health care for their citizens are the highest priority. They'll be working to restore the island's infrastructure. Cruise ship passengers have got to be darn low on the priority list even if they do rely on tourist dollars. (FYI, cruise ships don't dock in Grand Cayman -- you get a small tender boat from the ship to the dock.) To be honest, I don't want to be on an island that's still recovering from a hurricane any more than they want me there. :)

 

It's best not to set your heart on any port, particularly during hurricane season. Most of excursion companies receiving recommendations on CC won't charge you if the ship doesn't make it to port. It's something to ask about when you book (or after things calm down on the islands if you didn't ask at booking). You never know when a ship will miss a port of call.

[cruisinqt]

Sstarzz, to answer your question about Cozumel, no it was not hit by Ivan.:) And even though Jamaica was hit by Ivan, it didn't sustain the damage that the Cayman Islands did. It sounds like Jamaica will be up and running long before the Cayman Islands are. I have these same ports for my upcoming cruise and even have a stingray excursion reserved for Nov. 4th, one day after yours. So I've been following these ports very closely too. You might try going to www.stormcarib.com, I've found it very helpful with lots of info. on both the Cayman Islands and Jamaica. There are even listings of Red Cross centers in the area where money and other donations can be sent. These people really need our help.:( They will definitely be in my prayers tonight.

 

As for when these ports will be up and running again is anyone's guess. The local authorities will issue a statement as soon as they get a handle on things and assess the damage. Until then, all we can do is wait and hope. I'm sure if they substitute some other island for the Cayman Islands it will be a very enjoyable place to visit. I just feel so sorry for all of those people that are without a home, have lost their businesses, and are having to start all over again. It's such a sad situation!

[richtersl]

Best bet is to monitor the forum for your cruise line and see what passengers report back as to what port (if any) was substituted for Grand Cayman. Depending on your cruise line and original itinerary, some possible substitutions could be:

• Cost Maya, Mexico
  
• Progresso/Merida in Mexico
  
• Key West, FL
  
• Cozumel, Mexico
  

We just have to wait and see how things evolve in Grand Cayman and be flexible.

[DannyS]

http://www.caymannetnews.com/2004/09/738/financial.shtml

 

Cayman Islands financial sector to be up and running by Monday

Tuesday, September 14, 2004

In a statement released at 3 pm on Tuesday, the Governor of the Cayman Islands, Mr Bruce Dinwiddy, said that plans are moving ahead for the resumption of operations by the financial sector by next Monday.

 

Following a meeting on Tuesday with a cross section of commercial interests, the Governor said, “The infrastructure of the financial sector is mostly intact, including records and data.”

 

Support and regulatory agencies, such as the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority and the Companies Registry will be back in operation by Monday.

 

Several retail banks are planning to open early next week, “once we bring power back in George Town, which is expected to be by the end of this week,” the Governor said.

 

“The financial services industry will be back in action,” he added.

 

The Governor went on to say, “It is astonishing how much we have achieved already in the aftermath of Ivan.

 

“We are very, very confident that the Cayman Islands will regain its competitive vibrancy. We’re going to be back in business soon.”

 

The Governor earlier this week indicated that four representatives of the United Nations Development Agency, along with two disaster relief experts from Britain’s Department for International Development, will be arriving on the island on Wednesday.

 

He said today that some 80 officers and men from HMS Richmond came ashore in Grand Cayman to assist Government in security and other pressing matters. Their efforts are to be supported in short order by RFA Wave Ruler.

 

Owen Roberts International Airport resumed operations Tuesday.

 

The Governor also announced a collaborative effort between the local government and private sector, made up of “captains” of the financial industry and the key stakeholders representing electricity, water, water, food, fuel, shelter, transport, heavy equipment and security.

 

The initiative commenced with efforts by Mr Hugh Moses, Managing Partner of the law firm of Appleby, Spurling and Hunter, who said the idea for the collaboration came when the company made the decision to convert portions of its Mary Street offices to a makeshift shelter for stranded persons milling in the area during the storm.

 

“Overnight, Mr Moses said, “We broke into industry groups to begin to consider the larger problems…” and a key piece of that was to assist Government itself in becoming operational.

 

Emerging from discussions in which the Governor participated today, a steering committee has been formed: The National Recovery Steering Committee (NRSC), which will include Cabinet representatives, including the Leader of Government Business; The Leader of the Opposition; three representatives from the private sector; and a NHC/private sector relief coordinator.

[Globaliser]

Best bet is to monitor the forum for your cruise line and see what passengers report back as to what port (if any) was substituted for Grand Cayman. Depending on your cruise line and original itinerary, some possible substitutions could be:

• Cost Maya, Mexico
  
• Progresso/Merida in Mexico
  
• Key West, FL
  
• Cozumel, Mexico
  

We just have to wait and see how things evolve in Grand Cayman and be flexible.

The Cayman Islands Port Authority's ship schedules site is still running, and you can see from that which ships ought to be calling there. From that you may be able to trace back to the relevant cruise lines' websites too for information.

[Kay D]

Not only are streets, electricity, waterlines, sewer systems in total disruption all the stores in downtown are probably a mess & not prepared for visitors PLUS most restaurants destroyed PLUS snorkel/dive vendors have to recover (or maybe find) their boats & equipment PLUS the staff of all these tourist destinations (stores, hotels, restaurants, snorkel & dive boats) are individually dealing with their own damaged residence and family crisis!! Everyone there needs water, food, a bath, a toilet -- basics of life!!!

 

These things aren't fixed quickly or easily.

 

If the port does open in next month or later, what will there be to do except go to a beach?? Turtle Farm severely damaged.... who knows what condition of reefs, Coral Gardens, shipwrecks are.... who knows if Stingrays are even still around.

 

We were supposed to be on Grand Cayman all this week at a resort & of course that trip got cancelled & not even trying to reschedule for a while --

we had stopped there on 5 cruises & Cayman became our favorite island to visit (last there in Dec.)

 

Also we don't even know if our Radiance 11/28 cruise will even stop there!!

[98Charlie]

We were on RCCI LOS out of San Diego when Frances hit the Caribbean. Destruction I saw of Grenada and Grand Cayman I was able to view through CNN make my heart cry for the residents of those ports. Love the people and the entire experience of both of those islands. Saw a few pictures of flood waters in Kingston, Jamaica as well. I only hope the flood washed the rats of the Kingston Hilton Hotel out to sea. Been to Jamaica twice, once by cruise ship, once on a church mission fact finding mission. Heart goes out to the people of Jamaica for what they deal with through government control. However, if my ship docks in Jamaica again - I'll stay on the ship. Twice in Jamaica is enough for me, even though I do feel for the island's people and their livelihood. Hurricane destruction I can take. Giant rats in a Hilton Hotel is not my idea of a good experience., although I must say it was memorable.