Although much of the debris has been cleared from the city in the days since Hurricane Lisa passed through, Mayor Bernard Wagner says there is still work to be done.
Kyla Gentle
Belize City, Mon. November 7, 2022
The Belize City Council’s massive cleanup campaign is still underway, and according to Mayor Bernard Wagner, the city council isn’t finished yet, but has made considerable progress.
In an interview with KREM News’ Marisol Amaya today, Mayor Wagner discussed the devastation that hit the city last Wednesday with the passage of Hurricane Lisa. He pointed out that assessments made by the council show that many residents face an uphill battle when it comes to recovering from the effects of the storm.
From the moment the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) first cleared everything on Thursday, the mayor and his team on the city council have been doing what they can to provide relief to residents.
“It has been going on here at City Hall since this hurricane. Residents who lost their homes were relocated through the Human Development Agency through rent, and I believe they were able to pay their rent for three months before they put their homes back together,” said Mayor Wagner. rice field. .
The cleanup campaign launched on Friday and was bolstered by the service of nearly 300 Belize Defense Force soldiers and the support of an extensive list of public and private sector partners. These include the Orange Walk Town Council, San Pedro Town Council, National Fire Service, Environment Agency, San Ignacio/Santa Elena Town Council, Take Robe and Sons, GEL Quarry, Belize Coast Guard, Belize, just to name a few. Roadway Construction Ltd., Belize Water Services, and others.
As Mayor Wagner pointed out when asked about expressions of support from UDP politicians, such as Mayor Earl Trapp, who is the mayor of the twin towns of the Cayo district, the campaign is about solidarity superseding politics and partisanship. It was a manifestation.
“We all serve the people. People don’t want to hear about this red or this blue in times of disaster. People want to know what you can do for them…and Mayor Trapp replied, [call],” He said.
As of Sunday, Belize City Council and its partners have cleared more than 30 streets of debris and mud. But Mayor Wagner said the council will soon focus on providing much-needed humanitarian assistance to residents severely affected or displaced by Lisa. According to the mayor, the council is committed to leaving no one behind.
In addition to those directly helping clean up, the City Council receives a lot of support in the form of donations. did. These donations included everything from bales of toilet paper to clothing and bedding. Placencia Village Council plans to donate more supplies for hurricane relief following her second fundraising drive on Monday afternoon. Similarly, the Dangriga City Council donated large amounts of clothing to the City Council in addition to conducting cleanup campaigns.
In addition to this, Prime Minister John Briceño, at last week’s emergency cabinet meeting, will provide food storage to the city, in addition to ensuring local representatives have access to the necessary funds to bring relief to their constituencies. I promised. The prime minister took part in his second day of his campaign to clean up the city council on Friday.
“People have real needs. People are facing tough economic times, made even harder by Lisa’s influence, so we leaders have to be there. I want the Prime Minister to , told them it was very important that we do our best, that we act quickly, and we did it, and within four days of Lisa’s death, we mobilized all this heavy-duty equipment and manpower. We were able to remove more than 10,000 tons of debris from the city, which is amazing.”
But while much of the debris has been cleared from the city, Mayor Wagner says there is still much work to be done. He pointed out that while many of the city’s main streets have been cleared, many side streets have not yet been addressed. I asked for
Elsewhere, many facilities damaged during the storm have launched their own cleanup and restoration efforts. This includes Sister Cecilia Retirement Home, whose roof is being rebuilt with the help of dozens of volunteers, including Carpenter Woodworks in the Orange Walk neighborhood. Meanwhile, at St. Catherine’s Academy, students and staff began their day with prayers to remove accumulated dirt and mud from parts of the campus.
The Belize Zoo, which was severely damaged, will be closed for a while until it is restored. Nonetheless, the zoo continues to care for all animals housed there and is seeking monetary donations to support recovery and restoration efforts.
The damage caused by Hurricane Lisa is devastating. Many city council employees have also suffered significant losses and damages, according to Mayor Wagner.
“The city is here to help our staff put their homes back together, provide relief, and provide pantries wherever possible for our staff to get back on their feet,” he said.
