An Online Blog About the Daily Happenings of St. John, USVI
Radha Speer, who owns a shop at Mongoose Junction, has posted a bunch of photos of the beautiful shopping center, post-Earl.
What you see is what they got. Lots of branches down, a few trees broken, evidence the wind speed was up there … in other words, there's a lot of clean up to do. But Speer's shots show no serious damage.
This a picture of her husband, Glen, the architect and developer of Mongoose, wielding a chainsaw.
The Love City Triathalon and Aquathon, scheduled for Sunday, has been postponed.
"While conditions on the island of St. John are improving after the passing of Hurricane Earl, the road and water upon which the races are conducted are still being cleaned, cleared and repaired," the St. John Landsharks announced.
Organizers said the storm and its cleanup have taxed both physical resources as well as volunteers' time and energy.
"The race organizing committee is concerned with the safety and enjoyment of the participants, along with not overburdening the many race volunteers during this challenging time," the Landsharks said.
A check of St. John Webcams shows some on and some off. The "on" includes St. John Brewers' beautiful shot across Pillsbury sound. Remember the islands like this.
St. John's John Fuller (he also heads up St. John Rescue) blogged on StormCarib.com that Mongoose Junction's juice was restored midday Wednesday.
"Looks like St. John caught the most of Earl," he continued, "but most of the folks I talked to in and around Cruz Bay were thankful it was mostly a vegetation clearing with little damage."
The Governor lifted curfew last night since electricity has largely been
restored on St. Thomas and St. John. Government offices and schools
are also open today.
Steve Simonsen, the world class photographer, was on the north side of Great Cruz Bay when Earl was pounding the island Monday evening at about 6.
He shot video.
The camera is looking across the bay. The Westin Resort is to the right, out of sight. You can see his video by clicking here.
CaptainBK also posted some storm video to the Weather Channel. It shows too many boats on their sides on the beaches at Great Cruz and Chocolate Hole. Watch it here.
St. John's Eric Lidicker posted on his Facebook page that St. John is messy but not devastated. "STJ was mostly cosmetic w tree damage since the soil was already saturated from all the rain we've had & new growth."
Ferry boats are arriving again at the Cruz Bay dock.
This is a shot of from the St. John Spicecam, taken at about 12:15 p.m. It could be the Noon from Red Hook, or someplace else. It is not the first load of folks to arrive; they began coming via various boats after 10 a.m.
As a bonus, look at the bottom left of the picture – the infamous beach where people write things for folks back home to see.
Today's sand-scrit says "Bye Earl".
Speaking of the Spicecam, it's been very very popular since the weekend. Even today, getting something like 1,200 visitors a minute.
While the Westin Resort said it suffered "minimal" damage from Earl, and no structural damage, the same cannot be said for folks with boats moored in Great Cruz Bay.
Bob Egan, a guest from West Falmouth, Mass, staying at the Westin, was on the beach today shooting video and stills of the day after.
He said 'some pretty nice vintage boats' litter the beach, eight in all, including a 30-foot "Cape" and a cabin cruiser.
For folks like himself, staying at the resort, the storm was just a 'bad, rainy day.'
Police and Red Cross workers, he said, were also seen at the Westin today.
You can see Egan's stills and videos, loaded onto CNN's iReport Web site, here.
Little Orphan Annie was right. After yesterday's hurricane, the sun did come out 'tomorrow.' This is a shot from the St. John Spicecam in Cruz Bay at about 4 p.m. eastern daylight time.
No signs of ferry service returning on this day – maybe tomorrow. Word is that a curfew will again be in effect tonight, starting at 6 p.m.
An announcement from the Westin St. John says Earl was no big deal. The resort "experienced minimal damage to our outdoor areas and the property did not sustain any structural damage. The resort team is currently cleaning up landscaping debris. Our associates and customers are all safe."
While the Beach Cafe and pool will reopen Wednesday, and the Snorkels bar/restaurant will be back in operation Friday, the beach is closed "until the necessary water safety tests have been completed."
