Emergency housing on Government’s agenda

At least 18 houses damaged in last week’s freak storm will have to be rebuilt.

Minister of Housing, Lands and Maintenance Dr William Duguid told Parliament today while speaking on the Resolution: Section 5, Crown Lands (Vesting and Disposal) Act, Cap.225, that the houses have been identified as needing to be rebuilt out of a total of 52 houses which have so far been assessed. He said a total of 97 houses have been reported as damaged.

Dr Duguid explained: “Four houses will be materials only; seven will have minor repairs and 23 major repairs with 45 yet to be assessed.”

The minister said the damages to the houses have led authorities to be concerned about Barbados’ readiness for a major weather system, including having emergency housing on standby. He said, the question has also been raised about what policies and programmes are in place to address emergency housing.

“This is something that will engage the ministry to see how best we can provide emergency housing in Barbados,” he told the Lower Chamber. “We recognize that emergency housing is a problem. We recognize that finding the land to put houses on is a problem.

“We recognize that when you find the land and you have the designs for the house, but you can’t get the money to put in the services, put in the roads, put in the electrical, put in the water do the drains. It is a massive undertaking each and every step of the way, but it is something that we intend to wrestle to the ground.”

Minister Duguid also recognized that the quality and standard of a significant section of the country’s housing stock has deteriorated and that assessments must be done to find ways to make them hurricane resilient in the short and long term.
(AH)