We Stand With Barbuda! (The Caribbean Island Of Barbuda Before And After Hurricane Irma)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post provides historical information about the island of Barbuda, part of the Caribbean nation of Antigua & Barbuda that was devastated by Hurricane Irma (September 5, 2017).

This post also showcases two pre-Hurricane Irma videos of Barbuda, and features a post-hurricane interview video of several Barbudans, as well as an excerpt of a USA Today post-hurricane article about Barbuda and its residents.

The content of this post is presented for historical and cultural purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and quoted in this post and thanks for the publishers of these videos. My prayers are for Barbudans and all others who experienced the devastation of Hurricane Irma.

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HISTORICAL INFORMATION ABOUT BARBUDA
From http://www.antiguanice.com/v2/client.php?id=697 BARBUDA'S HISTORY
Copyright Antigua Nice Ltd � 2012
"Barbuda's history has been intimately tied to that of Antigua for centuries. The first early attempts to settle Barbuda (by both the British and French) were failures, and it wasn't until 1666 that the British established a colony strong enough to survive the ravages of both nature and the Amerindians originally from South America, attempting to keep the Europeans off their islands.

In 1685, Christopher and John Codrington were granted a lease of Barbuda for 50 years in exchange for "One fat sheep on demand". With subsequent leases that granted them additional rights to the substantial wreckage along Barbuda's reefs, they became the island's preeminent family. For much of the eighteenth century the Codrington land on Barbuda was used to produce food and to supply additional slave labour for the Codrington sugar plantations on Antigua, and so the fortunes of Barbuda rose and fell with those of its larger neighbour. Testament to the influence of the Codringtons remains today, both in the island's place names and in its architectural remains....

A WORD ABOUT NAMES - The Amerindian name for Barbuda was "Wa'omoni", as seen in Father Raymond Breton's Island Carib Dictoionary.This is thought to mean the "Island of Herons". Since the word could mean any large bird, it could possibly cover the Frigate or Weather Bird, so common in Barbuda.

In 1529, Diego Ribero named Barbuda in his early map of the Caribbees as "La Barbuda" and Antigua "Elagua". Another geographer, Cabot, called it "Baruada". Then Descelius' map of the Indies (1546) shows Barbuda as "Barnada". Zaltieri's map of 1566 calls the island "Las Barbuda".

Historians in both Antigua and Barbuda and Barbados have no real solution to the origin of the names of these islands. Legend has it that both Barbuda and Barbados mean "bearded". This may refer to the occurrence either of bearded Indians that were found there or to the Wild Fig (Ficus sp.), which has a bearded appearance with its aerial roots dropping from lower branches. The latter is more likely explanation. In Sebastian Cabot's map of 1544, both islands, and these only in the Eastern Caribbean have curious dots around them, and believed by some to represent reefs. So it may be that foaming breakers may have reminded early explorers of islands with beards. Take your pick on the origin of the name!

In 1628, settlers from St. Kitts knew Barbuda as "Dulcina" for its "excellence and pleasantnesse thereof", but it soon reverted back to the name Barbuda."...

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EXCERPT OF ARTICLE ABOUT BARBUDA POST-HURRICANE IRMA
From https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/09/14/barbuda-hurricane-irama-devastation/665950001/ "For first time in 300 years, there�s not a single living person on the island of Barbuda'" by T.J. Raphael, PRI.org Published 11:40 a.m. ET Sept. 14, 2017 | Updated 12:30 p.m. ET Sept. 14, 2017
"Barbuda has been left completely devastated by Hurricane Irma. An estimated 95% of Barbuda�s structures are damaged, and the entire island of around 1,800 people has been evacuated.

�The damage is complete,� says Ambassador Ronald Sanders, who has served as Antigua and Barbuda�s ambassador to the U.S. since 2015. �For the first time in 300 years, there�s not a single living person on the island of Barbuda � a civilization that has existed on that island for over 300 years has now been extinguished.�

According to Sanders, Irma was �the most ferocious, cruel and merciless storm� in the island�s history. The hurricane was 378 miles wide when it descended on Barbuda, which is just 62 square miles.

�This was a huge monster,� he says. �The island and the people on the island had absolutely no chance.�

Evacuees from Barbuda were sent to Antigua, which did not suffer the same level of damage from Irma.

[...]

Right now, initial estimates suggest that Barbuda will need about $200 million to recover. Antigua and Barbuda will create a sustainable development plan for rebuilding Barbuda, Sanders says, adding that he hopes the global community will provide humanitarian recovery aid.

�We have declared a state of emergency in Barbuda because it is a complete disaster and uninhabitable,� he says. �We cannot cope with our own resources alone.�

In addition to financial aid, Sanders says the global community must also stand up to climate change.

�We believe climate change is here to stay � it�s a reality, despite all of the naysayers,� he says. �We know that these things have occurred as a result of the profligacy of the countries that are rich, and have abused the system. We, unfortunately, who contribute less than naught point naught percent of pollution of the world�s atmosphere, are the world�s greatest victims.�...

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SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Example #1: Codrington / Barbuda



Silesian Sailor, Published on Aug 22, 2015

A stroll through Codrington, the capital of Barbuda.
-snip-
This is the only comment is posted to this video's discussion thread
Queen B forever, July 2017
"Wow Barbuda is so clean and beautiful. I would like to visit someday. I heard the ppl are so friendly.?"

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BARBUDA ~ Coco Point ~ Best UAV Drone Caribbean Aerials ~ WeBeYachting.com



Capt Eric Bergeron, Published on May 24, 2016

Barbuda is an island in the Eastern Caribbean, that forms part of the state of Antigua and Barbuda. It has a population of about 1,638 (at the 2011 Census), most of whom live in the town of Codrington. The island is famous for its beautiful pristine pink coral sand beaches. Low Bay beach is 17 of unbroken miles of pink sand beach. With mysterious abandoned forts, Neolithic caves and beachfront untouched since the days of Christopher Columbus, Barbuda is host to a wild bird sanctuary standing on a mesmerizing lagoon. A liberal scattering of ancient shipwrecks off its shores, Barbuda is both the deepest retreat into solitude you could dream of and almost untouched to the world.

Destinations in this video: Coco Point, Barbuda.

Filmed by Annie & Captain Eric Bergeron
Edited on Final Cut Pro X on Mac
Camera: DJI Osmo, Nikon S9900, Phantom 3 Professional, GoPro 4 Black & DJI Inspire 1
Music By: From Gold ~ Novo Amor

[...]
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
Capt Eric Bergeron, February 2017
8 months ago
Its one of our favorite places to bring our guests to visit. The anchorage at Coco point is outstanding.
Thank you for watching,
Cheers from Sint Maarten?
-snip-
The people of the Caribbean nations of Sint Maarten and Saint Martin were devastated by Hurricane Irma.

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Example #e: Aerial View of Barbuda - Survivors tell Irma Story



Climate State, Published on Sep 6, 2017

Video by ABS Television / Radio - For more coverage and information from Barbuda visit their page https://www.facebook.com/abstvradio
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:

Roxann Webbe, 2017
"thanks for sharing you[r] story. Continue to stand with each other. we stand with you in the Caribbean."

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