St James fisherfolk hoping all will not be lost
Boats, nets, other equipment being safeguarded as Beryl approaches
Published:Tuesday | July 2, 2024 | 12:08 AMRochelle Clayton/Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU:
Fisherfolk in St James are bracing for the effects of heavy rainfall and windy conditions associated with Hurricane Beryl.
At the Montego Bay Fishing Village along Howard Cooke Boulevard in the Second City, fisherfolk were observed pulling their vessels and fishing pots on to the seashore on Monday afternoon.
They told The Gleaner that they would also be conducting a major project on Tuesday to ensure the safety of all their fishing equipment.
The anxiety was heavy in the air with fresh memories of the losses they racked up due to adverse weather conditions earlier in February. A vast number of boats and fishing equipment were badly damaged and lost during two days of heavy rainfall and windy conditions experienced across the island.
A few business places along the Montego Bay coast were also damaged.
While highlighting the precautions being taken, fisherwoman Althea Wilmott told The Gleaner they are hopeful that “all will not be lost” to the looming natural disaster.
“Right now, we are taking the pots and boats out of the sea. We also have to secure the nets and the gear that we have. We still have other gear in the sea because not everything is out as yet, but we are doing our best to secure everything,” Wilmott said.
She also noted that some fisherfolk would be staying on the property to safeguard the equipment.
“There has to be someone here at all times to watch the boats, so if the sea comes up on land, then we bring them up further. We know that the weather can change, so we have to be on the lookout to help each other. We have to be a helping hand to each other,” Wilmott said.
STILL REBUILDING
In the meantime, fisherman Camal Cunningham is ruing the potential of a second weather system badly affecting the fishing community in St James in months. He told The Gleaner that he and his colleagues are still in the process of rebuilding from February’s devastation.
“We nuh fully recover as yet, but we are trying our best to keep all of our vessels from the seashore so in the case that rough sea comes, it doesn’t bring additional damage on top of what happened to us already,” Cunningham said.
He, however, explained that they are mentally preparing for the worst as similar preventative measures were taken before the February disaster.
“We pulled them out of the water the last time, but we didn’t know that the sea was going to be so rough so that’s what happened before. But we are getting ourselves together.”
When asked if he believes that they will experience another major loss, Cunningham said, “It can happen because it nuh matter how far we bring the vessels on the seashore, water still can come up here.
“Fifty per cent of the vessels that were damaged in February were on land,” he added.
Similarly, at the Rum Bottle Bay Beach in Unity Hall, fisherman Michael Mitto is still hoping that Hurricane Beryl will not affect Jamaica, revealing that his equipment shop was badly affected during adverse weather conditions less than a month ago.
“The breeze weh blow ‘bout two weeks ago, it tear dung the whole a mi equipment shop. Mi just refurbish the top and mi see this ya now. Bwoy, mi nuh know how we go manage,” Mitto said, while sharing that he has started to take steps to secure his fishing equipment.
“Only thing left fi do a push up the boat some more, so mi affi go get some man fi help,” he added.
At the same time, the fisherman is worried that his property will fall victim to the hurricane.
“The shop is not made of wall; it is board, so mi probably affi go get a vehicle fi pick up the engine so mi can secure them. Because if any heavy breeze come, mi know the shop gone,” said Mitto.