The CARICOM Development Fund (CDF) has made a cash contribution of US$100,000 or approximately EC$270,000 from its Emergency Disaster Assistance Facility (EDAF) to the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to assist in recovery efforts following the devastating impact of Hurricane Beryl on July 1, 2024.
The initial grant contribution will support the efforts of the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the removal and transportation of the massive debris field left in the hurricane’s aftermath on the three Grenadine islands of Canouan, Mayreau and Union Island. The cash support will directly finance sea transportation of the debris for safe recycling in neighbouring Trinidad and Tobago.
The immediate removal of the debris is critical to the recovery due to the protection of the fragile ecosystems, the establishment of access corridors to deliver relief and the shortage of appropriate disposal sites on the islands. Hurricane Beryl impacted St. Vincent and the Grenadines as a Category 4 storm, causing damage, especially on the Grenadines islets of Canouan, Mayreau and Union Island where damage to houses, schools, churches, commercial buildings, health facilities, and public buildings.
