PM: Many fishers still struggling since Beryl

Prime Minister Mia Mottley has acknowledged that the local fishing industry is still struggling to get back on its feet nearly a year after Hurricane Beryl wrecked 200 boats and disrupted livelihoods across the sector.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the launch of the Caribbean Regional Logistics Hub and Centre of Excellence at the Grantley Adams International Airport on Monday, Mottley said many within the industry are still rebuilding and recovering, even as preparations ramp up for the 2025 hurricane season.

“A lot of boats are still being built back. We are also trying to put whatever we can in place, but this is our life going forward. The climate crisis is not going to change, she said.

Mottley, however, noted that despite the challenges, there appears to be greater awareness this year of the risks posed by extreme weather events, adding, “I think that everybody is a little more sensitive to what is necessary, and they’re unlikely to take as many chances.”

The Mottley-led administration’s support for the sector has included a Business Interruption Benefit, which was extended in December 2024 for an additional three months to assist fishers still grounded by the storm.

Under the programme, boat owners received $2 000 per month, while captains and crew each received $1 500 .

More than $3.7 million has been disbursed to affected fishers, including nearly $1 million for boat repairs.

Construction is also underway on the $54 million breakwater at the Bridgetown Fisheries Complex, as part of the recovery and resilience strategy.

The prime minister’s comments come as the island braces for what forecasters predict will be another above-average Hurricane Season.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s outlook for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which goes from June 1 to November 30, there is a 60 per cent chance of an above-normal season, as the agency forecasts a range of 13 to 19 total named storms.

Mottley urged Barbadians to be proactive and “take warning,” cautioning that the threat posed by the climate crisis is not going away and called for a cultural shift in how locals prepare and respond to extreme weather.

“You live in a world now that from June, even May, we’re at risk,” she said.

“I want us to train our children to be resilient in that way, but also take care of the ones who are not capable of taking care of themselves, because if we don’t, we’re going to have to pay the ultimate price in losing them.”

She urged Barbadians to take early warning signs seriously and avoid leaving preparations until the last minute, stressing that individuals should be ready to support themselves for at least the first 48 to 72 hours after a major storm, pointing out that delays in delivering food and medicine are inevitable in the immediate aftermath of a disaster.

“Have enough tinned food, have enough of your medicines. If you’re accustomed to keeping just one course of medicine . . . keep an extra one there, because these are the things that make a difference,” she said, also noting the importance of factoring in care for the elderly.

“Whatever it is, let us plan for it. Even though the hurricane season starts within a matter of days, we all know that it is an act in progress . . . Don’t wait until you hear it coming to go and line up and wonder whether you can get enough, because at some point, you might get to a supermarket and they’ve got nothing left for you.”

The prime minister also renewed her call for global action on methane emissions, arguing that reducing methane, a potent greenhouse gas, could help slow the pace of global warming in the short term.

“If we can get methane production eliminated . . . the scientists tell us that we can reverse the temperatures by half a degree. That’s only half a degree, but it matters,” she said. 

shannamoore@barbadostoday.bb