By Amanda Ulrich
For a small band of people still living in the Long Trench Community Centre, the holidays were slightly different this year.
In the corner of one communal room, residents set up a little Christmas tree. Complete with a string of lights and tinsel, it was still standing there in the early weeks of January. But the rest of the building looks much like it did in the days after Hurricane Irma, with plywood hammered over open window frames and a stack of donated supplies beside the door.
Despite their somber surroundings, most of the people still residing there — nine altogether, including four children — managed to find their own ways to celebrate the season.
Irvy Turnbull, 87, continued an annual tradition of carolling around Road Town with friends.
“Thank God that didn’t change,” he said. “Thank God for what it is.”
The Long Trench shelter manager, a father of three who asked not to be named, went to a nearby friend’s house with his wife and children for Christmas. That sense of community spirit has helped the group get by in their temporary living space for more than four months despite many challenges, he said.
“We try to use collective effort, collective resources to help each other, and especially in the initial stages,” he explained. “Since then, we’ve all been trying to get some [government] assistance. It’s not coming as fast as we would like.”
Dropping numbers
Last month, Sharleen DaBreo, the director of the Department of Disaster Management, said DDM’s internal goal was to have as many people as possible out of shelters and into more permanent lodging by Christmas.
Since Irma, the number of shelterees has dwindled — in the beginning of September there were some 300 across 18 informal shelters — but roughly 50 people still call community buildings across the territory home.
Ms. DaBreo reported that 28 people currently reside in the Multi-purpose Sports Complex, though 12 of them do not “reside there permanently” but “come and go.” At the East End Community Centre, there are five people. On Virgin Gorda, 14 individuals remain at the North Sound Community Centre, and 17 live at the Yates Condominium, though Ms. DaBreo stressed that this living situation is more akin to temporary housing than an emergency shelter.
She added that people are still living in shelter boxes on Jost Van Dyke, but exact numbers were not provided by press time.
Shifting responsibility
Since Irma, several entities have shared responsibility for the shelters and for assisting occupants, including DDM, the Ministry of Health and Social Development and the Red Cross, according to guidelines set out in the national emergency shelter manual.
Now, the Ministry of Health has transitioned into the main agency responsible for shelter-related concerns. HSD Minister Ronnie Skelton reported that a Housing Recovery Policy and Plan has been prepared to “address the urgent need” for temporary housing, repairs and permanent housing.
Mr. Skelton also said in early December that 366 applications had been received for housing assistance, and 134 were approved for available building materials.
Meanwhile, social workers have been working with shelter residents on a case-by-case basis to determine what assistance they need.
“[People in shelters] have been assessed, and as far as I’m aware the Ministry of Health is working on plans to relocate them to other areas or identify those that need special care,” Ms. DaBreo said.
Ministry officials could not be reached for comment or clarification.
First steps
The shelter manager at Long Trench said he has personally felt the impact of the ministry’s plan. He and his family received $2,500 worth of materials from the ministry so they can start the necessary repairs on their nearby home.
“It’s not fully sufficient to do what we need to, but any help is good help,” he said.
Like others living in shelters, he had read and heard that all emergency shelters were to be “officially closed” on Nov. 30.
Despite that warning, no one has been forced out onto the street or been told to leave.
“I’m glad they’re not kicking us out, but it’s not like we really want to be here,” he said. “We were hoping we might be able to get a little more assistance so we can rebuild.”
In the end, there are certain family milestones he hopes will happen outside of the shelter. Last week he was holding his tiny daughter, who wasn’t even a month old when Irma hit, as he talked about future plans.
“She hasn’t starting taking steps, but she’s rolling,” he said. “I don’t want this little one to start walking in this shelter.”
This article originally appeared in the Beacon’s Jan. 18, 2018 print edition.