One year on, Police infrastructure still needs urgent attention—Top Cop
A year later, much has not changed, a notion lamented earlier today, by the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force (RVIPF) Commissioner.
The Force’s ‘top-cop’ Mr Michael B. Mathews, in an early tweet said, “One year on from Hurricane Irma and recovery has been slow but steady in the main…However, one year on and Police infrastructure still needing urgent attention with over half our buildings still needing urgent repairs.”
The RVIPF following the Hurricanes in 2017 was also forced to rent accommodation, a situation that led to the owners Riteway Supermarket at Pasea Estate, having to start charging for the space that is occupied by the Police.
Committee Report
Earlier this year when Mr Mathews appeared before the House of Assembly’s Standing Finance Committee, he disclosed too that no repairs had taken place at East End, Virgin Gorda (including its destroyed Police barracks) and Jost van Dyke, where the station was completely destroyed.”
This in addition to the damages sustained to the Police’s infrastructure, on the main island of Tortola.
The barracks at Virgin Gorda had its entire top floor destroyed; the roof went and even some of the walls too, according to Mr Mathews.
He said, however, RVIPF was given funding through a United Kingdom contractor to look at it as part of the immediate repair work in the aftermath of the hurricanes.
He further stated that he regretted to inform the Committee that by the time "we reached the end of the United Kingdom financial year, the funding had not stretched to make the repairs to the barracks."
He said, this has become very challenging to have to move officers and there is no accommodation especially for officers who have homes on Tortola.
Reconstruction of the police estate also remains an urgent priority and requires allocated funding, he had said.
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9 Responses to “One year on, Police infrastructure still needs urgent attention—Top Cop”
to the outside world because it may influence tourist dollars. some people out and about are insane and not
being put in check. there was an attempted murder by a person gone beserk last week and they still are out and
about. all kinds of crap like that and people driving like they want to kill someone today just because. much
worse than publicized.