As hurricanes Irma and Maria ripped through the Caribbean, divers around the world were left wondering about the fate of many of our favorite destinations, including the U.S. Virgin Islands and Dominica. The USVI was impacted severely by the September hurricanes, but recovery efforts are underway.
“From a diving perspective, St. Croix reefs, operators and properties are fine and ready to accept visitors,” says Andrew Wartenberg with the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism.
On other of the archipelago’s islands, damage is widespread, but the USVI’s territory-wide curfew has been lifted, effective Oct. 31. Both St. Croix and St. Thomas airports are open with multiple airlines operating.
For updates on the status of USVI recovery, visit usviupdate.com.
To help USVI recovery efforts, visit usvirecovery.org.
In Dominica, residents are continuing to assess damage and work toward bring daily life and diving back to a state of normalcy.
All dive operators are currently closed. The Dominica Watersports Association has reported 35-percent damage to reefs at 10 dive sites. Some operators are expected to reopen in January, offering a reduced number of dives per site to limit negative impacts on the especially fragile ecosystem.
However, there are a number of properties open to visitors, and multiple airlines have announced resumption of services to Douglas Charles Airport.
Follow Dominica’s recovery at opm.gov.dm.
Make a contribution to Dominica’s recovery efforts here.
The hurricanes affected more than just the islands that suffered a direct hit. St. Eustatius — a prime dive destination also know as Statia — was not hit as heavily as nearby St. Maarten, but depended on the travel hub to deliver visitors.
Mike Harterink of Scubaqua Dive Center on Statia says that they are fully operational and receiving flights now from St. Maarten. He hopes visitors will keep their plans intact and even book trips now, because the islands relatively deep reefs were largely unaffected, and the big artificial reefs — the Charlie Brown and Tugboat — were only slightly damaged from the storm.
Many Caribbean dive destinations — some that were completely unaffected this hurricane season — have seen cancellations from uneducated travelers concerned about the affects of the hurricane. Make sure you are an informed traveler, doing the proper research — including reaching out to your resort and operator — before canceling a trip. In times of recovery, these countries need tourism support more than ever. Follow travel advisories from trusted sources like Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association and reach out to your hotels and dive operators before calling off a dive trip.
Source: sport diver
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