ROSEAU, Dominica, CMC – Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit says his administration will place greater emphasis on environmental issues as well as structural and engineering designs as the nation continues to recover from the devastation caused by Tropical Storm Erika that slammed into the island one year ago.
In a message on Friday, one year after Dominicans witnessed the wrath of the storm, Skerrit said the government has worked hard to reconstruct lives and rebuild the nation.
“We are not yet where we would wish to be, in terms of the rebuilding effort, but I am sure all would agree, that our progress has been remarkable, and we are on course to building back better, our beloved nature isle.”
The prime minister told the nation that the process of rebuilding is not one to be rushed.
“The reality is that replacing and rebuilding the entire damaged infrastructure and resettling displaced persons is a mammoth task. This concept will be applied to our construction practices, and very importantly, to architectural and engineering designs. There will be greater emphasis placed on environmental issues and this will be appropriately reflected in our overall national land use policy.”
Skerrit said Dominicans will not forget the carnage that revealed itself, on the morning of August 28, 2015.
“We have spoken about it repeatedly over the last 365 days, and since then, every single community has been touched in a positive way by the efforts we have made, as a government, and as a people, to reconstruct and recover from this ordeal.”
He called on the nation to pause and remember those who lost their lives.