VOLUME 15 ISSUE 35

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SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2019 – SEPTEMBER 13TH, 2019

Website: www.suntci.com

VOLUME 15 - NO. 35

Email: sun@suntci.com

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Fax: (649) 941-3281

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FORTIS RATE INCREASE RECOMMENDED by Hayden Boyce Publisher & Editor-in-Chief

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he independent expert appointed to hold an inquiry into the reasonableness of a rate increase application by Fortis TCI, has recommended the increase of 6.8 percent which the company had requested, reliable sources told The SUN. The company, the governor and the government have been informed of the recommendation by the expert, Mr. J. Paul Morgan, but it is reportedly up to Governor Nigel Dakin to make the final decision. When contacted for comment, Fortis CEO Eddinton Powell referred The SUN to Talisha Simons, the company’s Senior Director for Corporate Communications & Public Affairs, who stated: “The Independent Inquirer has concluded the Inquiry process and submitted his report. That report was addressed to the Governor and shared with FortisTCI. At this time, the company would prefer that any questions be referred to the Governor’s office.” Damian Wilson, the Policy Support/Media & Civil Society Liaison Manager for the governor, said: “The response will be a government one in regards to this. The Governor will not be issuing a separate comment on this matter.” Up to the time of writing this report, Premier Hon. Sharlene Robinson could not be reached for comment. On July 11th, 2018, FortisTCI filed a rate variation application under Section 34 of the Electricity Ordinance, proposing an average rate increase of 6.8%. Residential customers with an average monthly consumption of 500 kWh would see an increase of approximately $8 per month on their electricity bills. The rate variation application seeks to restore the company to a stable financial position following the impact of the 2017 hurricanes, Irma and Maria, which Fortis estimated at US$42 million. At that time, FortisTCI President & CEO Eddinton Powell said, “We were resolved that the country not miss the 2017 - 2018 tourist season. FortisTCI, along with its parent company Fortis Inc and with the support of numerous local and international partners, responded quickly and worked to restore electricity in less than 60 days. Continued on page 2

An aerial view of damage caused by Hurricane Dorian is seen on Great Abaco Island on Sept. 4, 2019 in Great Abaco, Bahamas.

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Hurricane Dorian devastation in The Bahamas could cost $7 billion

reliminary estimate of total insured and uninsured losses in the Bahamas from Hurricane Dorian is $7 billion, catastrophe modeling company Karen Clark & Company (KCC) said on Thursday. The estimated includes building, contents, and business interruption exposures for commercial, residential and industrial properties, while excluding infrastructure or auto losses, KCC said. Hurricane Dorian left stretches of the Bahamas looking as if they had been carpet bombed. Dorian smashed parts of the tourism-dependent Bahamas to ruins, leaving relief officials scrambling to battle an unfolding humanitarian crisis as the scale of the catastrophe begins to emerge. Aerial video of the Bahamas’ Great Abaco Island revealed mile upon mile of flooded neighborhoods, pulverized buildings, upturned boats

and shipping containers scattered like Lego toys. Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis put the death toll at 20. “We can expect more deaths to be recorded. This is just preliminary information,” Minnis told a news conference. “Marsh Harbor has suffered, I would estimate, in excess of 60 percent damage to their homes,” Minnis said, referring to the port on Great Abaco. “The Mud, as we know, has been completely destroyed or decimated,” he said in reference to a shantytown known as the Mud and the Peas. “Victims are being loaded on flatbed trucks across Abaco,” said one Twitter poster with the handle @mvp242, describing a rain-blurred photograph of limp bodies strewn across a truck bed.

Other Twitter messages said whole communities were swept away. Minnis said he saw people waving for help in a community near Coopers Town on Great Abaco, after it was cut off by floods. “There were around 30 people trapped and waving yellow flags, sheets and shirts to bring our attention to their survival.” A video posted on Twitter showed a storm surge rising up inside a two-story home, the sofa and other furniture floating toward the second floor. Another showed residents trying to swim from one home to another through the surge. In another, a woman repeatedly says, “Please pray for us,” after the storm ripped the roof off her apartment building, exposing her, and other residents, to the elements as she struggled to shelter her 4-monthold baby.

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Hurricane Preparedness In case of flooding, know the location of the nearest hurricane shelter. If called to evacuate, do so immediately. Further information and hurricane safety tips are available on our website: www.fortistci.com/hurricane-preparedness-tips

www.fortistci.com | 649-946-4313


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VOLUME 15 ISSUE 35 by The SUN Newspaper - Issuu