Employees have been told to remain at home as Tropical Storm Kirk draws nearer to the island.
State-owned DBS Radio reported moments ago that it had received information from Prime Minister Skerrit that there will be no work today as Dominica prepares for the projected passage of the storm later today.
“The general public is hereby advised that today, Thursday, September 27th will not be a working day, in light of Tropical Storm Kirk. Please be guided accordingly,” the prime minister also wrote on his Facebook page.
Skerrit announced on Wednesday night that there would be no school today.
“With respect to the no work decision, we are erring on the side of caution because of our profound concern for the safety of our citizens and residents because we do not take decisions like these to have people stay home very lightly as I am very concerned about the impact of these decisions on the economy but at the same time our primary concern would be the safety and well being of the citizens and residents of the country,” Skerrit said in an interview on DBS on Thursday morning.
He said essential services, as is customary, will remain on duty.
The prime minister addressed the lack of clarity in the information regarding the movement of residents which was given by the police at a NEPO press briefing at 8:30 on Wednesday night.
“I understand there was some confusion last night…I think what the police wanted to say was that those who have no business outside to remain indoors and we are urging people that really, if you have no business outside to stay indoors. We do not know how impactful the weather will be on our country, so we have to take all precautionary measures,” he explained.
At 5 am today, Tropical Storm Kirk was located near latitude 13.5 North and longitude 58.3 West or 224 miles or 360 kilometers east south-east of Dominica.
Maximum sustained winds remain near 50 mph and extend 140 miles to the north and east of the center of the system.
Kirk is moving west north-westward near 16 mph.
On the forecast track, the center is projected to move south of Dominica, near to or over Martinique, later this afternoon into evening.
DA is certainly crying a lot these days. I wonder if it will let up after hurricane season is past or whether it will continue regardless of the season?
The incompetence of Roosevelt Skerrit and his group of hopelessness is demonstrated by the hour. The Press Conference of Wednesday night was the biggest piece of confusion ever displayed in anticipation of a storm.
The Police wanted to show their machoism of force and they have things under control, Skerrit in the wilderness of what to be done, Cecil Shillingford completely comical and Joseph Isaac acting like he regretted ever jumped ship.
With all the information that is available on the internet, preparing for a tropical storm should not be too difficult. The coordinates of the storm clearly indicate that Dominica will be affected in the latter part of the day, therefore the country could do with production for at least five hours. People who live in vulnerable areas can be advised to stay home or leave work early, but to declare another NO WORK DAY is a burden on the economy.
Skerrit and his gang don’t care because they do not have to find money to pay workers for three days.
I read a few comments and some folks complained about curfews the government had in placed during previous hurricane warnings for Dominica .It seems they forgotten what happened during passaged hurricane Maria,I know for sure there will not be another looting again like some of you guys did during passaged hurricane Maria,The government learn a lesson ,So blame the looters when the government put curfew in place.
Well I will tune in to the Big Station Q95 to listen to what Patriot Honourable Dr Thompson Fontaine,and patriot honourable Joshua Sikiri Francis have to say to their multitude of listeners.These Patriots are brighter than satellite,and came to fame during hurricane Maria…Our death rate could have been several times higher if some of us did not listen to them.Great Teachers!
Sikiriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
Fontaineeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Good morning, this is great news and a very wise decision. I hope you all remain safe and there is no loss of life, and no or little damage.
Thanks again.
I agree with you Badbaje. This is a responsible decision . It is called acting with dispatch. When you are a leader you cannot be undecided and wait to say “if” after the fact. I say good job. We can only pray that the good Lord will bless us with His protection. The P M leadership will be judge on his track record of how he handle recent disasters like Erica and Maria.