Residents in temporary houses to receive plumbing, utilities soon
By Esther Durand, BVI News Staff
Plans are afoot to provide plumbing and utilities to residents still living in temporary houses in the territory.
Four domes costing $9,000 each were purchased for persons living in emergency shelters but did not own land. Three were distributed on Jost Van Dyke and one in West End, Tortola. Impacted persons who owned land were provided with makeshift wooden houses.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Social Development Petrona Davies said neither the domes nor wooden facilities were equipped with washrooms, and occupants have been utilising nearby facilities in the interim.
She said sanitary facilities and utilities are now to be included in the scope of works that are to be contracted by the Recovery and Development Agency in what she said was the not too distant future.
“We have been working with these families for some time,” she explained.
Families, single occupants still in temporary housing
Davies said she did not know the overall number of persons still living in temporary housing but indicated that it is a mixture of families and single occupants.
In the meantime, the permanent secretary said other families who are in need on Anegada and Virgin Gorda will be assisted with temporary houses as well.
However, she is encouraging residents in temporary housing to seek out permanent shelters in the event of another major weather event.
“We don’t encourage anybody to ride out a hurricane in temporary housing whether it is a dome or a wooden house,” she said.
During an interview with BVI News on Wednesday, Davies explained that residents on Jost Van Dyke now have a fully-repaired emergency shelter.
She said the Church of God of Prophecy on the sister island received a grant of $63,400 to undertake the said repairs. The church is one of the emergency shelters on that island that needed repairs following the 2017 hurricanes.
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these people still in temporary housing since Sept 2017..?! Wow.
With all due respects to your office, you should be ashamed to share this information with the public. It is evident that the former administration had their priorities misplaced.
Hon. Carvin Malone please shed some light on the monies spent to date. It’s not adding up.
So let me get this straight, are you telling me a Church collecting money every Sunday for those attending getting money to repair their roof????
Plumbing and utilities coming soon for the igloos. So that means people is going to be stuck in those igloos for a while. I am not knocking a roof over ones head but come on. They may as well build yurts.
I didnt know we had eskimos here?
Yeah, minus the Ice. I agree, yurts are more economical and they look better.
Whereabouts do you put you put the corner cabinet?
these things happen because too much restriction from the government. building a house here $$$
All this help for a BVI family(“I born here”). Them who sit on the corner, under the tree and with their head consistently down on a phone and their fingers going…hmmm! Who need the dire help and assistance aint getting it. The next ting dem will want in that yard is for the donors to clean the yard. Young strong men…smh