Current:Home > BackSurvival story as Hurricane Beryl razes smallest inhabited island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines-InfoLens
Survival story as Hurricane Beryl razes smallest inhabited island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines
View Date:2024-12-23 16:39:05
MAYREAU, St. Vincent and the Grenadines (AP) — Mayreu is one of the smallest inhabited islands of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It’s so small that it’s barely visible — a dot on the map of the Caribbean. Hurricane Beryl nearly erased it from the map.
Beryl pummeled everything along its path, ripping up roofs of schools, crumbling homes and stripping trees of almost every leaf on the 0.46 square miles (1.2 square kilometers) of this island of about 360 people.
“Everything was flying all over the place,” Mayreau resident James Alexander said recalling the storm, “I saw a tank full of water lifted up and swirl in the air.”
Beryl made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane Monday on the Caribbean island of Carriacou in Barbados and close to St. Vincent and the Grenadines, leaving a swath of destruction as it kept moving west and strengthening later into a Category 5.
The storm is the earliest storm to develop into a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic. On Friday, it moved over Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula after battering the resort of Tulum and reemerged in the Gulf of Mexico, prompting Texas officials to urge coastal residents to prepare as the storm headed their way. Beryl has caused at least 11 deaths as it passed through the Caribbean islands.
Other islands in the Grenadines archipelago, like Canouan, also suffered extensive damage. But tiny Mayreau has been mostly ignored in its pleas for help.
Most lost it all: 98% of the island’s structures were severely damaged, according to the latest report from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Agency.
When the storm hit, some of the people of Mayreau sought refuge in The Immaculate Conception Church. But the sturdy building built more than 100 years ago with local stone did not have a chance against the wrath of the Category 4 hurricane.
People sheltered in the church barely made it out. Almost miraculously, they escaped unharmed but for a few minor injuries. With only one small clinic, which has also been damaged, and one nurse, that the injuries were minor was the only good news for the people of Mayreau.
The storm ripped every roof off every home on the island. Many were left as piles of dust and rubble.
“This church suffered an awful fate as a result of the passage of Hurricane Beryl and it’s an indication of what has happened throughout this island,” Luke Browne, St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ former minister of health, said as he stood in front of the rubble of The Immaculate Conception Church.
Browne said he had been visiting Mayreau since he was a child and had seen the congregation “grow and thrive.” He made a plea for help to rebuild his native island.
Mayreau residents are now stranded without electricity or shelter — not even a roof — to protect them from the sun and rain.
Islanders are badly in need of everything, from food and water to tents and baby formula for its 14 youngest inhabitants.
Mayreau is far from the mainland, accessible only by a four-hour boat trip from St. Vincent.
Although some aid is expected to trickle in from nearby islands, the need is enormous, and the aid is only guaranteed for a short-term. There are no vehicles on Mayreau, so residents form human chains, passing vital bottles of water hand-to-hand to the improvised shelter.
The small population depends on tourism and fishing, both of which were disrupted by the storm.
“I’m just happy,” Alexander said, “to be alive.”
__
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
veryGood! (474)
Related
- He failed as a service dog. But that didn't stop him from joining the police force
- Simone Biles wins gold, pulls out GOAT necklace with 546 diamonds in it
- Miss Teen West Virginia Has the Perfect Bounce Back After Falling Off Stage at Competition
- After Trump’s appearance, the nation’s largest gathering of Black journalists gets back to business
- Golden Bachelorette: Joan Vassos Gets Engaged During Season Finale
- Authorities are investigating after a man died in police custody on Long Island
- When does Simone Biles compete next? Olympic gymnastics event finals on tap in Paris
- US equestrian jumping team made last-minute lineup change, and won Olympic silver — again
- Study finds Wisconsin voters approved a record number of school referenda
- Doomed: Is Robert Downey Jr.'s return really the best thing for the MCU?
Ranking
- What do nails have to say about your health? Experts answer your FAQs.
- As gender eligibility issue unfolds, Olympic boxer Lin Yu-Ting dominates fight
- First two kickoff under NFL’s new rules are both returned to the 26
- 'You're going to die': Shocking video shows Chick-fil-A worker fight off gunman
- Jordan Chiles Reveals She Still Has Bronze Medal in Emotional Update After 2024 Olympics Controversy
- Rachel Bilson Shares Rare Insight Into Coparenting Relationship With Ex Hayden Christensen
- Teen charged with murder after stabbing attack at Taylor Swift-themed dance class
- Matt Damon's 4 daughters make rare appearance at 'The Investigators' premiere
Recommendation
-
New Pentagon report on UFOs includes hundreds of new incidents but no evidence of aliens
-
Nebraska, Ohio State, Alabama raise NIL funds at football practice through fan admission, autographs
-
What are maternity homes? Their legacy is checkered
-
Here's what the average spousal Social Security check could look like in 2025
-
Texas man accused of supporting ISIS charged in federal court
-
Does the alphabet song your kids sing sound new to you? Here's how the change helps them
-
Thousands were arrested at college protests. For students, the fallout was only beginning
-
CD match, raise, or 9% APY! Promos heat up before Fed rate cut. Hurry to get the best rate