All indications are that a bolt of lightning was the cause of the fire that destroyed
the building that housed the Antigua Yacht Club Marina (AYCM) and several
other businesses in Falmouth Harbour.
That is the word from the owner of AYCM, Carlo Falcone, who gave that report to
Cabinet where he was invited to attend on Thursday for an update in the aftermath
of the fire that happened early Tuesday morning during the passage of Tropical
Storm, Philippe.
“The Estimate of the destruction has not yet been calculated but it will run into the
millions of dollars. Falcone’s insurance company dispatched an investigator there
to examine the damage and to make an assessment,” according to a Cabinet
spokesman.
Both the Cabinet and Falcone applauded the work of the fire department for the
efforts of the firemen to contain the fire.
“The fire department saved other neighbouring properties which were in danger of
catching fire from combustion. The Cabinet expressed its thankfulness to the
firefighters who were always in personal danger because of lightning strikes, high
wind gusts, and the waves which threatened to suck them into the sea,” the
spokesman noted.
The Cabinet also discussed the impact of Tropical Storm Phillipe on the country.
The storm dumped more than 8 inches of rain in parts of Antigua and caused many
dams and reservoirs to fill up, Potworks Dam capable of holding 1.2 billion gallons
of water is about one-third (1/3) full and with daily extractions will last more than
3 months.
The Minister of Public Utilities noted that the Fort James Reverse Osmosis (R/O)
Plant, The Crabbes R/O plant, The Ivan Rodriguez R/O plant, The Ffryes R/O
plant, Pigeon R/O plant and Camp Blizzard R/O Plants, Big Creek and Potworks
Dams will produce nearly 9 million gallons daily. It is estimated that demand for
APUA water will fall below 8 million gallons daily, APUA will not be rationing
water after the soil in the run-off settles. More rain is expected from another
tropical storm which is forming in the open Atlantic.
