Hello ep,
Ivan is likely a category 5 storm now... Winds estimated at beyond 155 mph... With no sun to highlight cloud tops, etcetera at this time of night, everything is just estimates until tomorrow morning...
Jamaica is where my beautiful bride and I chose to honeymoon oh so many years ago now... Ocho Rios, on the north shore, to be specific... Truly a gorgeous island... At least it was...
Back to Grenada for a minute... Over 90% of the homes on that island were destroyed. Not just damaged, but destroyed. The islands meager infrastructure (roads, potable water systems, sewage systems, etcetera) have been totally destroyed. Aside from a very inadequate supply of emergency medicines, water and food, little else is left on the island. Their two main industries (tourism and spices) have been nearly 100% destroyed. A prison that housed (among other prisoners) violent felons was destroyed. In the process, each and every last prisoner has escaped to elsewhere on the island, though there's nowhere for the escapees to go to. Even if the authorities caught them, there's no place to put them, so why bother...
I truly hope that Jamaica avoids the intense damage that Grenada suffered, but I know that won't happen. The mountains of Jamaica are a softer soil, meaning the intense rains will undoubtedly cause mudslides and severe flooding. The southern coastal areas are particularly vulnerable to the storm surge. And there are very few buildings able to withstand category 5 winds anywhere on the island.
Back upthread somewhere, someone asked where the Cayman Islanders would evacuate to... They'll go to the center of Grand Cayman Island, which is the "high" spot. If Ivan is still a category 4 or 5 by the the time it reaches them, then God help them...
KJC |
