Total number of displaced in St Vincent now at 7,411

The National Emergency Management Organisation (NEMO) of St. Vincent and the Grenadines has released on Thursday its updated numbers on its displaced residents.

A total of 7,411 people have been registered in the displaced list, with 4,136 of them staying at the 89 public shelters provided by the authorities.

Some 3,718 individuals are being housed in private shelter, with the number still growing, according to St. Vincent’s Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves.

There are no recorded casualties.

The Caribbean island is now blanketed with volcanic ash, which has been a cause of concern among healthcare professionals in the area. Between 16,000 to 20,000 people were evacuated before La Soufriere’s eruptions started last Friday.

The Associated Press reports that officials in St. Vincent “were extremely worried about a COVID-19 outbreak.”

In a news release, the government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines announced six new COVID-19 positive cases from the 179 samples processed on April 14.

The lack of water and electricity has aggravated the effects of the pandemic, with more positive cases being reported as thousands of evacuees crowd into shelters and private homes.

Long lines formed at water trucks and at money transfer companies, with some standing for hours to retrieve cash from loved ones.

According to Dr. Simone Keizer-Beache, chief medical officer on the Caribbean island, roughly a dozen cases have been reported in recent days.

“Let us work together to prevent a second catastrophe,” Keizer-Beache said in a press conference broadcast by local station NBC Radio.

In spite of the glaring challenge, officials are determined to conduct a massive testing as part of contact tracing. People are still urged to keep wearing masks and to cooperate, noting that some who arrive at shelters do not want to be tested, which is voluntary.

The La Soufriere volcano hadn’t erupted since 1979, but in late December 2020, the volcano started rumbling again. Scientists observed the dome and decided it was an early indication of an impending eruption.

The island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines will have to brace itself for the coming days, or even weeks, as scientists anticipate La Soufriere’s to drag on.

La Soufriere’s 1902 eruption had killed some 1,600 people on the island.