Politician weeps in post-hurricane parliament

By Davion Smith, BVI News Online Journalist

Government parliamentarian Archibald Christian wept in the House of Assembly yesterday as he recalled the monstrosity of Category 5 hurricane Irma, which caused wide-scale wreck throughout the British Virgin Islands (BVI) a month ago.

“I cry because I’m alive,” the junior minister of tourism said as he dried his eyes.

Christian told the first post-Irma sitting of the House that the hurricane was a divine message for people of the BVI to be humble.

“When I realized that I was still alive after Irma and I saw that persons were still alive, all I could do is thank Almighty God. I never prayed so much in my life in one particular period of time. I confessed to God all my sins [and] asked for his forgiveness. I confessed to anybody that I offended, anybody that I had wronged, and I still continue to do it today.”

“Irma taught all of us a lesson in humility — how to be our brother’s keeper despite the differences we may have,” Christian added.

He, in the meantime, said he hopes to see a lot of good come out of the hurricane. “The good has already been portrayed in our community.”

Christian said the hurricane was not only unprecedented, but also unexpected. “It was forecast to be a very devastating hurricane. But there is no person in this territory alive today that can say with any degree of certainty that they were ready for what Irma delivered on this territory,” the second-term lawmaker further said while noting that he also cried during the September 6 hurricane.

The House of Assembly sitting was held at Save The Seed centre in Duff’s Bottom because the official parliament building in Road Town was damaged during the hurricane.