4 By Angelique Lettsome A Storm We’ll Never Forget September 6th, 2017 — a date forever etched in the minds of the Virgin Islanders who lived through its sunrise and sunset. A day through which we are forever linked as its life-altering memory sent shockwaves across our territory. Homes were destroyed, families were displaced and our once vibrant territory bustling with life came to a deafening hush. It felt like we were living in a post-apocalyptic world, and the worst part was that nobody saw it coming. Life Before The Storm Here in the Virgin Islands, our calendar has a natural rhythm. January starts slow as folks ease into the new year, recovering from all of grandma’s good food and guavaberry rum from Christmas time. March brings Easter break with beach picnics and kite-flying. August is for Festival, filled with music, mas, and emancipation, while September marks the return to school. But June through November is hurricane season. A phrase we used to toss around casually back then, before it carried the weight it does now. I was two months shy of my fifteenth birthday when word of the storm began hitting the airwaves. During that time, I was living in a quiet area nestled between Long Look and East End called Old Plantation, on the island of Tortola. I had just entered fourth form which would be my junior year based on the American system. This was a significant time in the lives of myself and my classmates as we could finally see the light at the end of that high school tunnel. It was a time many of us saw as an opportunity to step up and prove ourselves. Life felt promising. School had only just reopened two days before, and everything still had that fresh, back-to-school energy. New notebooks, new teachers, new goals. But just as we were settling in, talk of a storm began to pick up. I remember how unfazed we all were. My classmates and I didn’t take it seriously. Hurricanes were like a seasonal ritual for us, a bit of wind, a definite blackout, some flooding, and a few cozy days indoors with snacks and devices. We had no concept of what was really coming. The storm’s category rose quickly, but from what I remember most people in the community stayed calm. The last big one most could remember was Hugo, and even that felt like ancient history. The Storm The morning of the storm, everything still felt eerily normal. My cousin and I were charging our devices, ready to pass the time like it was just another passing system. Meanwhile, my parents moved around the house in hurricane mode, locking the shutters, checking the water supply, and setting the battery-powered • Continues on next page
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