After the passage of IRMA on 6 September 2017, the island of Saint-Martin was severely affected: marinas destroyed, infrastructures damaged, houses damaged... One year later, the island recovered and tourism was revived with the reopening of hotels, restaurants and charter bases for water sports.
To prevent this tragedy from happening again, communities have put in place action plans to build differently. Projects and reflections are being carried out, particularly at the level of marinas to best protect the boats - it should be recalled that almost the entire fleet has been destroyed by winds of over 300 km/h and waves several metres high.
"Even though we are used to cyclones, with IRMA we learned that we were very small. It is impossible to learn from them. Each of them is different. Either we prepare for 2 to 3 days on land, or we decide to go to sea, but we don't know what awaits us. Unfortunately, there are no miracle solutions... We know how to manage hurricanes up to force 2 and 3, or even a small 4, but then it's impossible to fight" explains Bulent Gulay, President of METIMER, the association of sea professionals.
Damage after IRMA ©Metimer
How can we build better at sea to protect ourselves from cyclones??
However, there are ideas to try to combat a meteorological phenomenon of such magnitude "We should make concrete docks in marinas. Today, there are poles or buoys, but something more solid can be built. It must be said that the marinas built 50 years ago were also obsolete. There are things to do."
There is also the question of better anticipation, particularly for boat rental bases, which have been unable to move 50 boats at once. The idea of moving the boats to other bases after the tourist period is therefore under study. And even to stop charter periods during the cyclone period, from June to October.
Shipyard Polypat Caribbean © Bateaux.com
On land, too, there are solutions to better protect boats out of the water, as was the case at the Polypat Caraïbes shipyard located on the Sandy Ground bridge in the Marigot bay. To prepare for the hurricane season, some owners took their boats out of the water and sheltered them in the yard.
The boats were strapped and dismasted and still found themselves in the water as the sea rose. However, little damage has been identified within the site, as Fred Wojcik, manager, explains "IRMA did a lot of damage on the island, but we suffered less than the others. We are well prepared for cyclones, despite the rise of heavy water. Every year, we take out the boats of the owners who want to keep them dry and we are used to the technique."
Shipyard Polypat Caribbean © Bateaux.com
New building standards on land
Given the extent of the damage, the new building standards are still under consideration, although the community has already planned measures, as Kate Richardson, director of the Saint-Martin tourist office, explains "The ground floor should no longer be used for residential purposes, but only for commercial purposes. In the hotel industry, an evacuation plan must be put in place with a 1-week program on D-2, D-1, etc. Finally, individuals are required to build a panic room - a secure room - in their new buildings and are strongly encouraged to build one in old homes."
For the past year, architects have been reviewing construction methods, particularly the slopes of the frames and the thickness of the sheets. These measures should be quickly legislated.
Reconstruction in Orient Bay ©Bateaux.com
At the beach level, nautical and tourist infrastructures are also affected by new standards. In Orient Bay, for example, the local Saint-Tropez, built in 92/93 after Cyclone Luis, by a Tropezian investor, everything was destroyed. The Baie-Orientale - located on the east coast of the island in the French part northeast of Marigot - was a must-see stop on the island, the most active beach for water sports.
Everything was razed to the ground, the restaurants were destroyed, washed away with the cyclonic tide. But a year later, the construction starts again, but in a different way "Not all new construction can be so close to the sea anymore. The foundations can be hard, but the structures must be able to be dismantled and flown away if necessary." concludes Kate.
Orient Bay ©Bateaux.com
Even if a hurricane of such intensity - 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale - can hardly be anticipated and controlled, the island of Saint-Martin is looking for and finding measures not to relive the damage caused by IRMA in 2017, the biggest hurricane ever to hit the French island. While the event was devastating, it also allowed a deeper click to make a lasting difference.
