San Andres archipelago devastated by Hurricane Iota

With the San Andres archipelago (San Andres Island, Providencia, Santa Catalina) being devastated by Hurricane Iota on November 15, an appeal is being made to regional governments and people to offer needed support.

Emiliana Bernard Stephenson, manager of San Andres based television station, Teleislas, spoke on Sunday with host Earl Moxam on Radio Jamaica’s That’s a Rap, giving details of the destruction wrought on the islands, particularly Providencia and Santa Catalina.

She said housing and other infrastructure on Providencia, home to about 5,000 residents, was about 98 per cent destroyed and as a consequence the residents are being evacuated to San Andres Island. Electricity on the island is still down, and with it, internet service as well, making normal life near impossible. Her news team now travels by boat to the island daily and bring back footage of the disaster for their reports each evening.

Santa Catalina, the smallest of the three islands, is normally home to only about 50 families, she said, but expressed concern about the possibility that it might be taken over by outsiders if it is abandoned for too long.

The San Andres archipelago, a province of Colombia, retains strong cultural ties to Jamaica, given the history of contacts between the two peoples, with many Jamaican descendants being part of the local San Andres population.

Ms Bernard Stephenson is therefore hoping that there will be scope for Jamaicans to participate in the rebuilding and restoration process that will follow.

NOTE: Please click on the audio icon above to listen to the interview.