In November 2016, two tropical trough systems produced heavy rains in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, which resulted in intense flooding across the island chain. The torrential rains, ensuing flash flooding, and landslides resulted in widespread damage to road, bridges, water infrastructure, and housing.
From September through November 2016, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) experienced a series of significant rainfall events beginning with the passage of Hurricane Mathew in September 2016 and culminating with the passage of two trough systems on November 9 and November 28, 2016. Due to the consistent rainfall over the period, ground conditions were largely saturated which set the stage for intense flash flooding associated with the two troughs. A single death was reported from Bequia.
As a result of intense rainfall, numerous landslides were triggered, resulting in significant damage to national road infrastructure. Flash floods, several of which were associated with debris flows, damaged bridges and private property with particularly devastating impact to lower-income communities. These effected were particularly focused in the north-eastern and north-western portions of the island of Saint Vincent (mainland).
In summary, presented in table below, the transport sector accounted for 67 percent of the impact experienced because of the two events, accounting for approximately US$24.3 million (EC$65.7 million) of the total US$36.3 million (EC$97.9 million) in assessed damage and losses.
The housing sector accounted for US$4.6 million (EC$12.3 million) of the total damage and losses, with a total of 189 houses affected. While accounting for only 13 percent of the total damage and losses suffered, the impact is particularly severe as low-income families who are least capable of recovering from disaster events were disproportionately affected.
Finally, Industry and Commerce (I&C) impacts of US$4.9 million (EC$13.1 million) are reflected primarily as losses due to closure of the airport, businesses, and Government offices during the disaster event which resulted in the inability to conduct business and reduced productivity. The final economic impact is expected to be higher as the disaster events occurred during a period that is seasonally high for the retail industry as it is before the Christmas season when commerce usually increases.
The macroeconomic impact of the floods and landslides will take longer to become apparent. The possible increase in the imports of food, agriculture supplies, material for the reconstruction or rehabilitation of public infrastructure such as roads and bridges, and private infrastructure such as houses could result in a worsening of the BOPs. Moreover, given the increase in the demand for labor for civil works, it is expected that there will be an increase in the cost of labor, thereby increasing construction costs, all of which may contribute to a worsening of macroeconomic conditions. Further analysis is required to fully quantify the impact on the BOPs.
In the fiscal sector, some of the increased expenditures were accommodated by making use of the Government’s budget framework, which allows for the reallocation of funds. Funds budgeted for existing programs would have to be diverted to cover the immediate expenditures for emergency response. The total estimated costs of the disaster represent approximately 49.5 percent of the projected 2016 capital budget (US$73.2 million or EC$197.7 million) and 10.7 percent of the total budget US$338.1 million (EC$912.9 million)1 programmed for 2016.
Source: https://goo.gl/8Uuk8e