Hurricane Ivan, a category 3 system with sustained winds of 115mph, impacted Grenada
and its dependencies on Tuesday, September 7th, 2004, leaving a trail of damage. According to initial reports, eighty per cent (80%) of the country was reported to have been demolished with at least eighty- nine per cent (89%) of the housing stock being destroyed. Ivan left tremendous devastation in its wake.
Damage caused by the storm was extensive, with the worst observed being in the parishes of St. George’s, St. David’s, St. John’s and St. Andrew’s. Significant damage to the housing stock was recorded, in the form of wooden houses being totally destroyed, roofing being blown off houses (both concrete and wood), and with concrete walls being knocked down. In addition, electrical poles were downed in many areas of the country, thereby affecting power distribution and telecommunications. Reservoirs and intake structures were adversely affected (fallen trees, silt and general debris). In addition, distribution lines were damaged. This resulted in island-wide disruption of water supply services. As a result of electric poles coming down, telecommunications island-wide were disrupted. This also extended to the cellular network, where antennae were moved out of alignment. Damage to housing infrastructure was also accompanied by widespread deforestation throughout the island. Anecdotal reports indicate that during the hurricane’s passage over Grenada, several small but powerful whirlwinds were noted. These had the effect of exacerbating significantly, the damage that occurred. Three areas in particular suffered damage form storm surge and wave action. These were the
areas of Soubise to Marquis, Rive Antoine and Waltham. At Soubise for example, local eyewitness accounts indicate that the storm surge and wave run-up was in excess of +3.0m above Mean Sea Level. The result of this was that the sea pushed all of the houses along that strip of roadway from the seaward side of the road over to the landward side. Residents subsequently relocated their homes back to their original places after the storm.
In the wake of Ivan, many persons found themselves without shelter, food, belongings or a social network to provide immediate support. It was reported that 18,000 persons were without homes and required relocation to approximately 160 formal and informal shelters. Unfortunately, many locations designated as shelters had their roofs torn off by hurricane Ivan forcing persons to seek alternate places of refuge. However, two weeks after the event, the numbers residing in shelters had been reduced to approximately 5,700 persons, or approximately 7% of the affected population, distributed in just over 140 shelters.
A damage assessment jointly conducted by the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and the United Nations Economic Commission of Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) estimated damage over US$800 million or twice Grenada’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Specific losses can be distilled as follows: Housing, 89 percent of the country’s housing stock was damaged, almost 30 percent of which required complete replacement, with only 15 percent of private homes insured, representing a significant problem of underinsurance; Public Buildings, in excess of 80 percent of building structures on the island sustained some form of damage; Education, all but two of the primary and secondary schools were affected; Health, 11 health facilities, including the second largest hospital, were seriously damaged; Environment, 91 percent of the forest lands and watershed were stripped of vegetation; Tourism, close to 70 percent of hotel infrastructure was rendered inoperable. Other areas severely affected include the Power Sector, where nearly the entire electricity distribution system was destroyed, and the Agricultural Sector, which suffered a near complete loss of the year’s crop. Nearly 85 percent of the nutmeg crop (Grenada is the second biggest nutmeg producer in the world) was affected and 60 percent was completely destroyed. The hurricane also destroyed virtually the entire banana crop and roughly 60 percent of the cocoa trees
Grenada received help from the International Community, The United States and the international community helped Grenada take a number of steps to maintain a degree of fiscal stability in the country's difficult post-Ivan period, said the IMF. For instance, donor pledges from the international community of $150 million were quickly marshaled to fill financing gaps in 2004. Without global support on this scale, it might have been difficult to overcome the effects of the damages of 200 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) inflicted on Grenada by Hurricane Ivan, said the IMF.
For its part, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) initially provided more than $2 million in emergency aid to Grenada. As it realized the full extent of the damage, USAID then provided additional support for health services and damaged infrastructure (including the island's electric system), for livelihood restoration, and for short-term food security projects. USAID also contributed an additional $3.7 million to rehabilitate health clinics, assist small business and provide emergency housing.
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