Wmcmanus
President treasurer secretary and sole member of the Cayman Islands Head-Fi Club.
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2002
- Posts
- 11,830
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Hi friends. I’m back in Cayman (4 days now) and am filled with mixed emotions more than ever now that I’m “directly” experiencing the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan. Having been off-Island during this terrible storm was a real blessing to be sure. I was able to mentally process a lot of what happened here before my arrival by following internet accounts of the damage and seeing a lot of pics. Yet, nothing could have prepared me for the reality, which is ever so grim.
What are my mixed emotions?
On the one hand, I was extremely lucky in terms of my personal property. In total, my out of pocket losses will be around $25-$30k after various insurance indemnities. These losses come mostly in the form of deductibles that I’ll need to meet for various items, lost rent money from my apartments while they are being repaired for several months, and some uninsured losses like my ’97 Jeep Grand Cherokee which is a total write-off. The only vehicles that were covered by insurance were those with comprehensive, and since my Jeep had 3rd party, I’ll have to kiss it goodbye. The best of all possible news is that none of my headphones (or other audio gear) was damaged!
On the other hand, this Island is a complete mess and many people have lost everything. It is extremely hot in the afternoon and there is debris piled up everywhere, so the whole place looks and smells like a huge garbage dump. Food, gas and water are now plentiful and the cleanup efforts are moving quickly. I’m told that this has greatly reduced the sanitation risks and the garbage trucks are now picking up “normal” household garbage (i.e., food waste) in those areas where the odor is most severe. There is a total estimated damage of between $800 million and $1.2 billion, and for an Island of 76 square miles (half of which was already inaccessible swamp) and 40,000 residents, that’s a whole lot of damage. An estimated 95% of all residences suffered at least some damage and 20% of all residences are uninhabitable. Other than my neighbor immediately across the road who didn’t lose as much as a shingle, I’ve yet to see another house that will not have an insurance claim. One of the most amazing stats is that there were only 2 storm-related deaths, so at least there were safe buildings to go to in Cayman, unlike places like Haiti which has suffered far worse then we have.
My blessings continued after my arrival. On Thursday, water was restored to my house on a 24/7 basis. Only about 30% of the homes have this luxury at this time, although some 80% have water for a couple of hours in the morning and then again in the evening while they are testing the system for leaks and contamination. In my neighborhood, we are served by a resiviour that has now passed all of the tests (so no more boiling before drinking). Then on Saturday, power was restored to my house! This is a huge relief because only the George Town area where the financial/banking industry is located had power as of a week ago. Maybe 10% of the home outside of George Town have power so I’m extremely lucky and grateful to be able to watch movies, use the computer, phone lines and fridge and not have to hear the roar of a generator (not to mention having to go outside at 3am to fill the tank up with gas again).
There are hundreds of pictures of Grand Cayman floating around on the internet, but the post-Ivan reality is more like an endless horror movie than a series of crash site snapshots. In a strange way, it reminded me of the feeling I got when I returned from a wonderful vacation in Colorado only to be disappointed in the photos and video clips that I’d taken. They didn’t capture the vastness of the reality which was quite beautiful in that case, but equally horrid in this case. The destruction is simply endless, and you just have to see it to believe it.
Yet, despite all of this, most people are back to work and have high spirits. Many roofs have gone back on and each day another restaurant opens, more building supplies arrive, and fewer people remain homeless or in the shelters. The schools will not open until January but many people have sent their kids to the States. Most of the problems now are of a financial nature and there are relief funds for those who were hit hardest. There is a 10pm–5am curfew in effect which keeps the looting and other crime down to a minimum and reduces accidents. There are still no street lights or traffic lights so it is pitched dark in most areas other than the light of the moon and whatever is lit up by generators. Thankfully, I don’t have to listen to mine anymore!
I’m now scheduling a series of “movie nights” for different friends across the Island so they can come to my house and enjoy an evening of “normalcy” in air conditioning! They can catch a good comedy, listen to some reggae afterwards and even do a mini head-fi meet if they are so inclined (most are not, sadly). This, plus Domino’s pizza (now reopened) lots of cold beer and an open bar. Most of my friends have children, so the entire family will end up crashing for the night and then the kids can watch Disney movies the next day while their parents go back to work and I babysit. Today I had a 10 year old girl and 13 year old boy and a Palmeranian here all day. They more or less entertained themselves while mom and dad were at home cutting out sheetrock walls from 4 feet on down to the floor. Tomorrow night, my doctor and his wife will be spending the night, along with their crazy Brit neighbor. It should be interesting - Brits and beer...
What are my mixed emotions?
On the one hand, I was extremely lucky in terms of my personal property. In total, my out of pocket losses will be around $25-$30k after various insurance indemnities. These losses come mostly in the form of deductibles that I’ll need to meet for various items, lost rent money from my apartments while they are being repaired for several months, and some uninsured losses like my ’97 Jeep Grand Cherokee which is a total write-off. The only vehicles that were covered by insurance were those with comprehensive, and since my Jeep had 3rd party, I’ll have to kiss it goodbye. The best of all possible news is that none of my headphones (or other audio gear) was damaged!
On the other hand, this Island is a complete mess and many people have lost everything. It is extremely hot in the afternoon and there is debris piled up everywhere, so the whole place looks and smells like a huge garbage dump. Food, gas and water are now plentiful and the cleanup efforts are moving quickly. I’m told that this has greatly reduced the sanitation risks and the garbage trucks are now picking up “normal” household garbage (i.e., food waste) in those areas where the odor is most severe. There is a total estimated damage of between $800 million and $1.2 billion, and for an Island of 76 square miles (half of which was already inaccessible swamp) and 40,000 residents, that’s a whole lot of damage. An estimated 95% of all residences suffered at least some damage and 20% of all residences are uninhabitable. Other than my neighbor immediately across the road who didn’t lose as much as a shingle, I’ve yet to see another house that will not have an insurance claim. One of the most amazing stats is that there were only 2 storm-related deaths, so at least there were safe buildings to go to in Cayman, unlike places like Haiti which has suffered far worse then we have.
My blessings continued after my arrival. On Thursday, water was restored to my house on a 24/7 basis. Only about 30% of the homes have this luxury at this time, although some 80% have water for a couple of hours in the morning and then again in the evening while they are testing the system for leaks and contamination. In my neighborhood, we are served by a resiviour that has now passed all of the tests (so no more boiling before drinking). Then on Saturday, power was restored to my house! This is a huge relief because only the George Town area where the financial/banking industry is located had power as of a week ago. Maybe 10% of the home outside of George Town have power so I’m extremely lucky and grateful to be able to watch movies, use the computer, phone lines and fridge and not have to hear the roar of a generator (not to mention having to go outside at 3am to fill the tank up with gas again).
There are hundreds of pictures of Grand Cayman floating around on the internet, but the post-Ivan reality is more like an endless horror movie than a series of crash site snapshots. In a strange way, it reminded me of the feeling I got when I returned from a wonderful vacation in Colorado only to be disappointed in the photos and video clips that I’d taken. They didn’t capture the vastness of the reality which was quite beautiful in that case, but equally horrid in this case. The destruction is simply endless, and you just have to see it to believe it.
Yet, despite all of this, most people are back to work and have high spirits. Many roofs have gone back on and each day another restaurant opens, more building supplies arrive, and fewer people remain homeless or in the shelters. The schools will not open until January but many people have sent their kids to the States. Most of the problems now are of a financial nature and there are relief funds for those who were hit hardest. There is a 10pm–5am curfew in effect which keeps the looting and other crime down to a minimum and reduces accidents. There are still no street lights or traffic lights so it is pitched dark in most areas other than the light of the moon and whatever is lit up by generators. Thankfully, I don’t have to listen to mine anymore!
I’m now scheduling a series of “movie nights” for different friends across the Island so they can come to my house and enjoy an evening of “normalcy” in air conditioning! They can catch a good comedy, listen to some reggae afterwards and even do a mini head-fi meet if they are so inclined (most are not, sadly). This, plus Domino’s pizza (now reopened) lots of cold beer and an open bar. Most of my friends have children, so the entire family will end up crashing for the night and then the kids can watch Disney movies the next day while their parents go back to work and I babysit. Today I had a 10 year old girl and 13 year old boy and a Palmeranian here all day. They more or less entertained themselves while mom and dad were at home cutting out sheetrock walls from 4 feet on down to the floor. Tomorrow night, my doctor and his wife will be spending the night, along with their crazy Brit neighbor. It should be interesting - Brits and beer...
