Bolden’s horror

Tropical Storm Dorian left Barbados virtually unscathed when it passed by the island. However, for the Bolden family in Long Bay, St Phillip, it was nothing but horror as they fearfully rode out the storm in a house desperately in need of repairs.

Beverley Bolden told Barbados TODAY the place she has called home for the past 12 years, is in a semi-dilapidated state and she was afraid she would have lost part of it during Dorian’s passage.

“I had to get something to stick the wood together….If you go outside you would see all the thing for the window gone. My daughter did not sleep last night because she thought the back of the house would blow off,” she said.

When she took Barbados TODAY through the house, gaping holes were evident and the bedroom, front railings, and kitchen were severely damaged.

Bolden, who lives with her pensioner mother and a mentally challenged son, said she needed help.

“I would like the entire house fixed,” she said.

Pointing to specific areas that needed attention, she added: “All of this railing coming apart. I just change my stove, as it was giving trouble. All of here gone; all of here eating out and coming apart. The water was all down this door and it cannot open at all. All of here eat way so I cannot open the door too good.”

Bolden said she was thankful Dorian did not bring too much rain because her home was prone to flooding during heavy rainfall.

Her plight was discovered by Barbados TODAY during a tour in St Philip. The damage sustained in the parish as a result of Tropical Storm Dorian’s high winds included a broken telephone pole and tilted electrical poles. In Diamond Valley, FLOW employees were restoring Internet service in the area.

Belair resident Andrew Gibbons, who was on his way home from a nearby shop, recalled his storm experience.

“It was quite ok. We had some rain and high winds. We had yellow lighting – first time seeing that in my life. I actually saw the sky turn yellow yesterday, so it was actually pretty interesting how nature bought forth a different side of life we have not seen before,” he said.

Member of Parliament for St Philip South Indar Weir also toured the area and he told Barbados TODAY that his constituency was “in pretty good shape”.

“We have had some flooding in Heddings, which is a problem that we really need to get sorted; some down lines in Foul Bay and Gemswick. We also have minor flooding in Gemswick and Magenta Avenue, but apart from that, nothing major. I would say we are in pretty good shape so far,” said Weir, who is also Minister of Agriculture.

He added that he was working with his team to ensure he had not missed any residents in distress, but so far, he had not received any such reports.

Turning his attention to agriculture, he said there was no significant rainfall to cause any disturbance in the sector. (LG)