The first significant storm of the season brought winds as fast as 60 miles per hour and has since been upgraded to a hurricane, but officials were grateful to report that no injuries were reported here in relation to Tropical Storm Irene.
Officials issued an all-clear Monday morning and reported that the storm had passed without serious damage to most of the Virgin Islands.
However, a fire early Monday morning destroyed the main house on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island, Sir Richard reported on his blog.
The fire resulted in the lone serious damage call Fire and Rescue Services received during the storm, according to acting Fire Chief William Penn. Two fire crews, one from Tortola and one from Virgin Gorda, were still doing “fire suppression activities” late this morning, Mr. Penn said.
The centre of the storm passed about 40 miles southwest of Road Town yesterday at 6 p.m. Irene dumped eight inches of rain in about as many hours at the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport.
Many residents had to endure inconveniences such as branches in the road and power or water outages, but crews are working to restore those services, said Department of Disaster Management Director Sharleen DaBreo.
See the Aug. 25, 2011 edition for full coverage.