During Monday’s weekly Government House press briefing, Gov. Albert Bryan, Jr. provided community updates and defended the financial status of the Government of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Officials also provided a weather update and urged individuals to prepare throughout the peak of hurricane season.
Tropical Weather Update
Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency (VITEMA) Director Daryl Jaschen began the weekly press briefing with information about several tropical systems that are currently being monitored by the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
Jaschen explained that one of the tropical waves, currently called “Invest 92L” and located in the Central Atlantic, is forecast to travel north of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. However, he stressed that this is not guaranteed, and residents should remain vigilant. (An “invest” is an area under investigation by the NHC for possible cyclonic development.)
Jaschen explained that showers and thunderstorms associated with the system may be possible on Saturday and Sunday. Swells associated with the storm are not anticipated to impact the local islands significantly.
A second tropical disturbance behind Invest 92L may intensify while it remains out to sea for the time being.
Additionally, Jaschen noted that a hurricane is expected to form in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening portions of the Texas and Louisiana coastlines.
Jaschen reminded residents that, climatologically speaking, the peak of hurricane season occurs on Tuesday. He also noted that this month is the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) “National Preparedness Month.” He advised residents to be ready for emergencies and disasters, including hurricanes, and he offered the following three tips to keep in mind.
“[The first tip is to] never use a generator indoors,” Jaschen warned. “Keep generators outside and at least 20 feet away from homes and garages,” he said.
“[The second safety tip is to] gather important documents [and] take pictures [of the documents or scan the paperwork] and place them on a [flash] drive,” Jaschen stated. Jaschen recommended placing original documents into waterproof containers.
“Tip number three [involves] building your [emergency] kit,” Jaschen said. “Make sure [your kit] has enough food, water, and other supplies to meet your individual and family needs for at least five days,” he added.
Finally, Jaschen said that the risk of excessive heat across the islands will continue through October, and he advised individuals across the territory to remain hydrated and cool to help avoid heat-related illnesses.
Territory Finances
Bryan defended his administration’s work to help revitalize the territory’s financial status, including the administration’s recent request for approval by the 35th Legislature of the U.S. Virgin Islands for a new line of credit.
Bryan addressed comments and criticism made by individuals, including Sen. Kenneth Gittens. Bryan attempted to explain why a line of credit for the government would positively impact the Virgin Islands.
Income Tax Return Payments
While recognizing the challenges Virgin Islanders face due to inflation and a high cost of living, the governor explained that his administration is committed to issuing income tax payments.
“[The administration] has created a plan to pay $27 million in income tax [returns] over the next 30 days,” Bryan declared. “These payments should cover shortfalls that people are running into every single day,” he continued.
“At the end of [this round of payments], we will leave our income tax payment [debt] to about $48 million, which is a little bit more than a year behind [schedule], and we will keep on it to make sure that we keep up with [payments owed to residents].”
“With these payments, we will reduce our outstanding [tax] returns, but more importantly, it will reduce the stress that Virgin Islands families are feeling every day,” Bryan noted.
Community Updates
Tourism
Bryan shared news of a new legislative proposal regarding a potential boost for tourism across St. Croix, which would allow cruise ships docked on St. Croix to open their on-board casinos to passengers.
“In recent talks with the top cruise line executives [at the 2024 Seatrade Global Conference], we have laid the groundwork for a new legislative proposal, one that aims to boost and revitalize our tourism economy once again,” Bryan said. “This proposal would allow cruise ships that berthed on St. Croix to operate their on-board casinos, only for their passengers and only while in port,” Bryan added.
The governor acknowledged that most cruisers prefer to leave the ship while at a location and explore the island, providing financial gains across the territory. Still, he explained that the proposal is to help make the island of St. Croix more appealing to the cruise industry. Bryan also said that legislation allowing ship [casinos] to remain open in the St. Thomas/St. John district was enacted over 20 years ago.
“This legislation [proposal] isn’t just about adding casino operations [for cruise passengers arriving on St. Croix]; it’s about making St. Croix a more attractive destination for the cruise industry,” Bryan explained. “More ships mean more visitors. And more visitors mean more business opportunities for our people and small businesses,” he continued.
“[The goal of this bill is part of an effort] to ensure that cruise passengers stay longer, spend more money, and constantly enjoy our tourism product,” Bryan said.
“[This effort] is another small step toward enhancing our reputation as a premier destination in the Caribbean,” Bryan explained while adding that cruise industry partners are excited about the potential opportunity.
Development and Revitalization
Bryan said that funding has been provided to several organizations to help the continued revitalization of towns across the islands.
“Downtown development is a key priority of the Bryan/Roach administration,” Bryan declared. “Today, we are very excited to announce the distribution of funding streams to our three major towns in the Virgin Islands, [which include Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas, and Christiansted and Frederiksted on St. Croix],” Bryan said. “This initiative is designed to boost economic activity after-hours in the hearts of our community,” he continued.
“[The administration has awarded] the ‘St. Thomas Chamber of Commerce,’ ‘Our Town Frederiksted,’ and ‘The Christiansted Retail and Restaurant Association’ grants of $250,000 each for downtown events,” Bryan revealed.
Bryan explained that the grant money can be utilized to revitalize annual events that are already scheduled and to create new events as well.
In other significant community news, Bryan explained that a shipment of diesel fuel had finally arrived on St. Thomas. The fuel transport had been delayed, which resulted in the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority implementing rolling blackouts across the St. Thomas/St. John districts. The shipment finally arrived last week on St. Thomas.
“In order to [prevent future delays from happening], financial stability [for WAPA is needed],” Bryan explained.
The governor also offered his best wishes to a student who was injured at the St. Croix Educational Complex last Thursday when a ceiling fan fell and sent the individual to the hospital.
“First of all, I want to say that I’m very sorry that it happened,” Bryan stated, explaining that further details could not be shared due to an ongoing investigation.
“We are doing our best to inspect the rest of the [ceiling fans at public schools] to make sure that we do not have this incident recur, and [will attempt] to keep our students safe,” Bryan added.
