Negril Hoteliers Getting Back On Track

Hoteliers in Negril are working feverishly to repair damage and get their properties back in shape for the winter season, which starts December 15.
Several days of persistent heavy rainfall over the island last week, combined with a freak tornado, which hit Westmoreland on the evening of September 28, caused damage to several properties along the Negril west end. There was also some amount of erosion along the seven-mile stretch of beach for which Negril is world famous.
Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, who toured the area on Saturday (October 2), said that while the north coast was spared much of the ravages, “Negril did not escape it as we might have hoped.”
He said however that the area should be back to normal within a few days. “We had heavy wave action particularly on the western side, and a number of the properties there suffered damage, but I was very pleased to see work going on feverishly in all the areas so that within a day or two, the area will be pretty much back in shape,” he said.
He informed that some visitors were relocated to larger properties in Negril while others were sent to Montego Bay. “So, there was minimal dislocation within the area, and the good news is that we are pretty much getting back on track, and Negril is going to be looking better and brighter in a few days,” he stated.
As it relates to the beach erosion, Minister Bartlett told JIS News that “experts are advising that there is no need to worry as the large volume of seaweed that is present now will disappear soon and the sand re-deposited for all to enjoy”.
He said he will be making representation to the relevant agencies for permission to do some restoration work in the area, where a very large accumulation of seaweed can be observed.
“So, we are going to ask NEPA (National Environment and Planning Agency) to allow us to do that small exercise quickly, so that we can restore that area, and then afterwards, when the seaweeds have disintegrated, and the sand mound is there, we can take that sand and put it back on the beach, to ensure that the wonderful, pristine seven-mile stretch of beach that we have in Negril will come back in wonderful style,” he stated.