Financial losses in PoS no big deal
THIS WEEK has arguably been the worst in recent memory for Port-of-Spain businesses due to the double blow the city received from Monday’s explosion and Wednesday’s evacuation of the city due to the threat posed by Hurricane Emily. However Downtown Owners and Merchants Association (DOMA) President Gregory Aboud told Newsday yesterday that any loss of business in the city this week was "a small price to pay" to ensure the safety and security of the population. As Port-of-Spain shrugged off the effects of Emily yesterday, Aboud said the city was peaceful, and people were going about their business but it may not be "a great day for business." He hinted that this week’s events could have "tremendous implications for the economy of TT" and Port-of-Spain businesses suffered some financial losses which have not been quantified due to the numerous factors involved in that determination. Aboud said, however, that the financial losses suffered by Port-of-Spain businesses should not be the main concern at this time. "Law and order has been dealt its most serious challenge," he said. According to Aboud, while it is too early to comment on the status of investigations into Monday’s explosion, he is certain that the entire population is anxious to hear the final outcome of those investigations. DOMA members will meet tomorrow at the Crowne Plaza Hotel at 3.45 pm to discuss this week’s events and the overall security situation in the city. Aboud said DOMA will also be seeking meetings with Prime Minister Patrick Manning and National Security Minister Martin Joseph on these matters. Security intelligence reports from the US, British and Canadian governments and the American Central Intelligence Agency have indicated there is no international fallout from Monday’s explosion in Port-of-Spain and TT’s reputation as a prime investment site in the Caribbean remains intact. City mayor, Murchison Brown reported that clean-up operations began early yesterday morning following Emily’s passage and there have been no reports of major damage anywhere in the city. Solid Waste Management Company (SWMCOL) executive chairman Ray Brathwaite said contingents of CEPEP and Disaster Emergency Relief Team (DERT) workers have been deployed to assist the Tobago House of Assembly in clean-up operations in the sister isle, which took the brunt of Emily. Brathwaite said CEPEP and DERT workers were also assisting in clean-up operations in Port-of-Spain and other parts of Trinidad. He said CEPEP workers are also ready to be deployed to any neighbouring Caricom territory affected by Emily should the Government feel it necessary to do so. Blast victim still critical YVONNE McIVOR, who was injured in last Monday’s bomb blast in downtown Port-of-Spain, is still in critical condition at the Seventh Day Adventist Community Hospital in Cocorite. McIvor’s relatives are due to meet with her doctors today to determine if more of her leg has to be amputated. Doctors could not save McIvor’s left leg which was amputated from the knee down. At the time of the explosion, she had been walking down Frederick Street. The explosion blew off part of her left leg. She was returning from the Radiotherapy Unit at St James where she was being treated for cancer. McIvor was the most seriously injured of the 14 victims of the explosion. "We are grateful for the help from her friends and others. We are hoping that she stays alive," Sharon Samuel, McIvor’s niece, told Newsday yesterday.
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"Financial losses in PoS no big deal"