Belfast doctor fears for safety of relatives facing the storm

Local & National

Monday, August 20, 2007

By Claire McNeilly

An Ulster doctor last night spoke of his fears for the safety of his Jamaican father-in-law who lives on the hurricane-afflicted island.

Tim Stitt (32) - who is originally from Belfast, but until recently lived in Kingston - said he was also worried about family and friends caught up in last night's ferocious storm.

Dr Stitt, a scientist and computer programmer, added that his Jamaican-born wife Mary (32) last spoke to her 59-year-old dad John Collins two days ago.

Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph last night, the couple said the worst thing was not being able to get in touch with him afterwards to check he is safe.

"It's not the first time Jamaica has been hit with a hurricane," said Dr Stitt.

"John knows how to look after himself. He has lived there all his life and these things come and go. He's there with his brother, but we are worried about him.

"We are going to be pretty worried over the next few days. That's the hard part. Until we get through to him we just won't know if he's OK."

The Stitt family, including children Samantha (10) and Elijah (6) were at home in Dublin as details of the storm emerged.

But, just two years ago, they were living on the sun-kissed Caribbean island and saw first hand the heavy damage that Hurricane Ivan left in its wake.

"It was terrifying. It came in the early hours of the morning. In the middle of it there was a fierce, howling wind. It was a real frightening whippy sound. It lasted a couple of hours. We were scared, we had the kids. I was starting to panic," said Dr Stitt.

"At one point we heard the mango tree in the garden outside breaking bit by bit. It was a huge tree - it would have taken six people holding hands to circle it."

Dr Stitt added that, after Ivan, there was no electricity or running water for a week and a half. He said it was also impossible to get food.

"What happens after the storm is normally the most difficult part," he said.

"Roads are blocked and there are landslides. And if you live in the mountains - like John does - you may not be able to come or go for around two weeks."

Mrs Stitt, who is a television producer and writer, recently made a kids' programme called Hello World Jamaica and claimed that the last episode aired ironically featured hurricane advice for children.

"We are fairly used to hurricanes, but not in August," she said.

"Normally they don't come until September or October.

"I've been trying to reach my dad since yesterday, but I haven't been able to get him. I'm trying not to think about it. If I start to think about it I know I'll work myself up into hysterics."