“We are now open and we want persons to know that they are welcome to visit once again and that Soufriere is not a total disaster. Sites like ours and others are open for business as usual,” Nelson told the STAR on Monday. Damian Alexander, General Manager of the Soufriere Foundation echoed his sentiments.
One of the main sites hit by Tomas was the Sulphur Springs and the impact according to Alexander was significant. “The Sulphur springs is a place we normally have arrivals of about twenty thousand visitors in the month of November. This year for the month of November following the hurricane we have had about 1,300 visitors so this shows the extent of the effects of Tomas in terms of our numbers,” Alexander said. “In terms of damage we have estimated about EC$160,000 worth of damage was affected on the Sulphur Springs but the Foundation on its own has already spent EC$100,000 in trying to restore the Sulphur Springs.
The general manager told the STAR the original entrance to the site was lost since a massive landslide covered the main road. Parts of the road were badly damaged as well as the vendor’s village and some of the washrooms in that area. However the Sulphur Spring site was reopened two weeks ago using the entrance near Rabott. “Visually this entrance is more impactful since visitors can now see more flora and fauna and also the Rabott Lake which has some history. During the war between the French and British in 1795 a group of British soldiers were marooned there,” Alexander informed us.
On Monday when the STAR visited the Sulphur Springs everything looked intact save for the vendor’s village, which has now been transferred to the tour guides kiosk. The geothermal craters appeared uncompromised and there were several visitors enjoying a guided tour of the facility. While the main fall near the original entrance is still cut off due to the landslide, which is yet to be cleared, the baths are fully restored and operational.
“The SDF has taken the lead in helping restore the Sulphur Springs and other sites. We are not sitting around waiting on any one. We recognize that the Sulphur Springs and Pitons go hand in hand and if the springs are closed then the taxi drivers will be reluctant to take persons to Soufriere. We want everyone to know that we are back in business and we are ready to receive Saint Lucians and visitors alike,” Alexander stressed.
A number of other sites in Soufriere have reopened including Coubaril, Fond Doux, and Fonde Jen Libre. The road from the Castries to Soufriere is now open as well after a number of massive landslides had made entry and exit impossible following hurricane Tomas.
