Tobago hit by more than a "cloud" PM Kamla tells reporters

PM Kamla Persad-Bissessar takes a few minutes to greet the children during her tour of storm-ravaged Tobago

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar toured storm-ravaged areas in Tobago Monday, visiting locations that suffered the brunt of the attack from the tail of Hurricane Tomas on Sunday.

It was her second visit to the island. She made an aerial tour on Sunday shortly after the storm hit. 

On Monday she was back, making an air and land inspection to see how extensive the damage has been. She looked at some of the homes that were damaged and suggested that one problem in the island appears to be lax building codes.

"I saw some houses and it was very clear those houses should never have been built in those locations, and therefore the building codes legislation is very much necessary, especially here in Tobago," Persad-Bissessar said.

Before leaving by helicopter the Prime Minister said the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) has sufficient funds to manage the situation.

She also said she is happy that she had been prepared for the natural disaster in both islands, which she described as more than "a cloud".

It was a clear reference to Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley who had slammed the Prime Minister for for "over-reacting" to storm warnings on Friday and shutting down the country, causing panic among the population.

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She said the flooding and damage is "very real", noting that her decision to have emergency services on alert was the right decision. She added, "I don't believe it was a passing cloud, quite honestly."

She said on Friday she was reacting to advice from personnel who understood the gravity of the situation. "I acted upon the professional advice I received. And I make no apology for so doing. In fact I am quite happy I did so because if we were not prepared then the damage in Tobago would certainly have been far greater."

She said it was her "respectful view" that the government acted responsibly in this matter. "Thank God, Trinidad escaped," she added.

Persad-Bissessar also made it clear that when she took precautions on Friday she did not shut down the country as alleged by Rowley. 

"What happened was that we were getting advisories. I gave instructions for the school children to be sent home," she said, adding that this was followed by Government's plan to stagger the departure of people out of Port of Spain.

She said people "just jumped in their cars and went" when there was "no official communication that you must leave Port of Spain now. People felt it would be safer to go home and they did so. We did well."

However she admitted that there is always room for improving on the way things developed. "But we can improve. We can always improve." At the same time she noted that it is always difficult to have full control when there is a mass movement of people.

In the final analysis she said she was "happy" with the call she made because "if I didn't Tobago would have suffered most."