Letter to the Editor

Construct a proper docking system on the western shores of the North Sound for more cruise ships

Dear Sir,

Last week another cruise ship had to abandon its call to Cayman.

I am told that this was the twentieth day for the season that has been lost.

The average day is at least four ships, which amounts to twenty ships in total.

Most ships are very large and they average at least a minimum of 2,500 passengers per ship.

I am told that Government receives $13.50 per passenger and this equates to US$2,700,000 that the Government has lost.

This does not take into account the amount of money that would have been spent in the duty-free stores, on the bus tours, on Stingray City tours, in the taxis and other spending in general, which would probably amount to another $2million to $3million.

It must be remembered that the season has just started, and with the northwesters following up closely behind each other, we are likely to lose double the above amount by the end of April.

After the northwesters are through, the southwesters start in May or June and we are again faced with days that the cruise ships cannot land their passengers.

With the financial centers under attack, the good old days of the 1980s and 1990s are not likely to come back and we need to nurture our tourism and the only way to do this is as follows:

Complete the deepening of the western side of the North Sound, which is already 18-20 feet; fix the channel that the cruise ships can get in and construct a proper docking system on the western shores of the North Sound to accommodate six to eight cruise ships.

This would allow us to handle cruise ships 365 days a year, it would attract large ocean going yachts that we are not getting now and it would create the biggest boom that the Island has ever experienced.

The boom will last forever as long as the cruise ships continue to come.

This suggestion might not go down well with some people.

However, we are living in a rapidly changing world and we have to face reality and change with it, otherwise we will be left behind.

Tourism is now the world's largest business and many, many destinations in the Caribbean are competing with us and we have to be smart and retain our share.

The beautiful island of Cuba is next door to us and they are opening up gradually and they have some seven or eight beautiful seaports where cruise ships can dock safely.

If we are not smart we will suffer when that island fully opens up.

Again, I would like to stress that especially since September 11, 2001 we have seen radical changes and we are going to be called upon to do certain things that we would have never thought about 20 years ago.

Therefore this country, with not much other industry, needs to exercise prudence and to rapidly forge ahead on a planned strategic course, if all or most of us want to continue the lifestyle that we have become accustomed to.

Norberg Thompson