SEVEN days ago, Hurricane Beryl was on a crash course for the southern Windward islands, eventually wreaking havoc on Grenada – Carriacou and Petite Martinique – St Vincent and the Grenadines – Union Island, Canouan, Mayreau and Palm Island and Bequia – and parts of Barbados, Tobago and Jamaica.
As Beryl approached, an influx of boats and yachts were seen coming to Trinidad.
In an X (formerly Twitter) posted on June 30, Minister of Finance Colm Imbert said, "The government is preparing to accommodate them."
Speaking to Newsday via telephone on July 6, Minister of Trade and Industry Paula Gopee-Scoon said this accommodation and the waiving of fees to boat and yacht owners was a measure of goodwill.
"It was also a way of showing off our country's yachting sector for those who have come here in distress."
Vice president of the Marine Services Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MSATT) – who represents all businesses that support the marine sector – Jesse James shared similar sentiments.
"A lot of these boat owners are our customers, we need them to come here.
"Beryl is a regional disaster and we had to reach out to assist with the situation – when the registration is finished you will see over 200 yachts have fled here."
[caption id="attachment_1094843" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Yachts anchored at Scotland Bay, Chaguaramas, after Hurricane Beryl. Over 160 yachts came to TT waters seeking shelter from the hurricane, officials told Newsday on July 2. - Photo by Ayanna Kinsale[/caption]
Gopee-Scoon said on July 6, the official numbers have not been presented to her as yet, but well over 160 boats and yachts are registered in Trinidad and Tobago.
When asked what additional benefits the yachting sector and Trinidad and Tobago can have from the influx of boats and yachts Gopee-Scoon said.
"TT have very skilled craftsmen and the boat and yacht owners can get a lot of services done.
"We spent quite a tidy sum in the micro and small businesses in the yachting sector, particularly in the post-covid era as a lot of them suffered with the boarders being closed, so we provided support to them."
James, drawing reference to Grenada after Beryl hit saying "boats are in trees and falling down like dominoes."
He commended the collaborative effort of all the government agencies – Customs and Immigration, Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard (TTCG), Ministry of Agriculture Land and Fisheries and his line-minister Gopee-Scoon.
James said the TTCG have been particularly helpful during this time, as three vessels broke down while attempting to make it to Trinidad and Tobago.
Trouble in Paradise
Zi Vu a boat owner from Vietnam spoke to Newsday on July 2 at the Power Boat Association, Chagaramas and said she was docked in St George's, Grenada, and heard the news of Beryl making its way up the islands.
"It was a very stressful situation for us as we didn't know if it would hit Grenada or not.
"We decided to head to Trinidad at the last moment but our boat was not 100 per cent ready."
Vu and her partne
