Disaster Fund approves first 86 claims from August floods

Nearly two years since the 2017 August floods which caused $7.6 worth of damage across the BVI, the Department of Disaster Management (DDM) has approved a number of claims for compensation for that disaster.

Persons affected by the flood were able to submit claims based on a system known as the Emergency Disaster Fund which provides for disaster assistance and financial compensation. It allows affected persons to receive compensation in the form of food relief, shelter or emergency accommodation, material or equipment for persons within the fisheries or agriculture sectors, medical assistance, and financial grants.

Eighty-six of 253 claims has now been approved for the August 2017 floods. But, Chairman of the Disaster Fund, Glenroy Forbes said the compensation will vary for each recipient based on the nature of the claim.

He further said a number of factors resulted in the almost two-year wait for the approval of claims. One of those factors is that the DDM had to launch a comprehensive analysis to ensure each claim was indeed legitimate, and also to ‘to avoid any duplications’.

“This process took some time as persons had to be located, especially those who had been displaced and information on their claims had to be verified. However, I can confirm that the process was followed in keeping with the policy and persons are now receiving grants,” Forbes said.

Non-governmental organisations also played a role in assisting affected residents.

The Emergency Disaster Fund was established through the Disaster Management Act 2003, which was created to “provide for the more effective organization of the mitigation of, preparedness for, response to and recovery from, emergencies and disasters in the Virgin Islands and other matters connected therewith”.