Tobago fisherman, Charles James, has been operating from the Milford Bay area near Pigeon Point for 15 years and has “never seen the sea behave like that.”
James, president of the All Tobago Fisherfolk Association, was referring to huge, powerful waves that crossed the beach boundaries and crashed onto the main road inland, flattening fishermen’s makeshift stalls and huts and scattering debris.
“It was frightening. We had property that could have been destroyed, like our boats.
“I was telling the guys last night some activity taking place to cause that and the sea reclaiming its space,” James said, adding he was quite aware of the scientific reasons put forward by the Met Office. He said the stalls where fishermen cleaned fish and huts where they stored equipment were uprooted by the raging sea, including one with a concrete base.
The waves dragged the anchor of at least one fishing boat from the shoreline and ran it aground, James said. Old boxes, cans, stones and other debris have been pushing against other anchored boats and fishermen have not yet ascertain if there were any damages to them, he added.
James said no boat was destroyed but fishermen have not been able to go out to sea. Life in Matelot, probably the hardest hit by the large waves, has been severely disrupted. Officials closed the Matelot Community RC School and Matelot Community College yesterday and children were kept at home.
The sea reached inland as far as into the college’s park Tuesday, destroying crops in the school’s garden. Schoolteacher, Bernelle Shears, said no resident’s home was damaged but the waves broke onto the main road and left a litter of debris hindering the free passage of vehicles.
Matelot’s fishermen were badly affected. President of the Matelot Kingfishers Association, Anderson Zoe, said while only four boats were completely destroyed some 20-plus others were damaged.
Zoe said fishermen got a bulletin from the Met Office prior to the large swells and dragged boats from the sea shore to the roadway several feet up but the waves reached even there.
“The sea came straight up in an area we never thought it would come,” he added. He said fishing is Matelot’s main form of income and fishermen who could not go out to sea now were worried.
“Christmas is around the corner and a lot of people are on the breadline now,” he said. Zoe calculated that over $1 million were lost in boats, engines and nets. “One boat costs $50,000, a net between $30,000 to $40,000 and an engine $35,000,” he said.
Toco/Sangre Grande MP Glenda Jennings-Smith, who is in Washington, DC ,attending a conference, expressed her concern on the Matelot Facebook page.
“My Matelot ppl. I am not even in country. Omg Sunday I will be coming up. I will send someone today on my behalf. As soon as I reach home I will intervene.”
Zoe said Sangre Grande Regional Corporation chairman Terry Rondon and Fisheries officer for the area, Alicia Franklyn, visited Matelot yesterday morning but he called for the urgent intervention of Agriculture Minister Clarence Rambharat.
“A lot of fishermen had loans with the Agriculture Development Bank which they will not be able to pay right now,” he said.
Zoe said he got reports that fishermen operating from Blanchisseusse, Grand Riviere, Sans Souci and Toco were affected by the large swells but since they were not organised it was difficult to reach them.
Toco fisherman, Eric Miller, said yesterday only three boats in that area were damaged, adding the sea had “cooled down from last night.” He said the owners of those boats have to repair them and would not be able to go out to sea right now.
And, expect an increase in fish prices as a result, president of the T&T Unified Fisherfolk Association, Kishore Boodram, is warning.He said because fishermen have not been able to go out for about three days fish availability and prices would be impacted. He said because the demand for fish was not very high during this Divali period, however, the prices may not be that high.
Ferry sailings between Trinidad and Tobago have not been affected. “We had no rough seas reports and sailings are continuing as usual,” a Port Authority official said.
...Tobago also gets a battering
CASANDRA THOMPSON-FORBES
Several main beaches in Tobago frequented by tourists have been deemed unusable after they were battered by rough seas, in what has been described as mammoth waves.
Fishermen cleaning their stalls, businessmen removing sand and debris from their establishments, sandbags being secured and structural damages to some businesses were the scene at Pigeon Point and other beaches around Tobago yesterday after sea swells ravaged the coastline.
The T&T Guardian spoke with some of the business owners in Pigeon Point who indicated that while rough seas were common that was the first time they experienced waves of such magnitude. At the Conrado Hotel on the Pigeon Point beachfront, Crown Point, mounds of sand were observed in various areas.
Manager of the hotel, Lawrence Ruiz, said the hotel’s breakfast balcony and bar were destroyed.
“The rough sea destroyed certain parts of the balcony and you could still see huge deposits of sand.
Popular restaurant and bar owner of Basso’s, Renny Anthony, said his business which is nestled on the Pigeon Point beach was also affected by the sand which was pushed into his establishment by the huge waves. He said he planned to use the wait-and-see approach as the occurrence was expected to continue until the end of the week.
Meanwhile, the Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) is assessing the damage. Director of TEMA, Allan Stewart, said while the damage could not be quantified at this time, an impact assessment would be done which would see co-ordinated efforts among various agencies, including URP and CEPEP.
Other beaches affected in Tobago were Swallows in Crown Point, Grange Bay at Mt Irvine, Englishman’s Bay, Bloody Bay, Castara and Parlatuvier.
The MET office has advised all marine interests and individuals to be vigilant and safe on the nation’s beaches.