WARNING: NO BEACHES. NO TOURISM.

Just one look at these pictures of the beach damage on Seven Mile Beach caused by Hurricane Helene is heartbreaking. It’s a worsening of an already bad situation. And Hurricane Helene is not fully to blame. (see our article SEVEN MILES BUT LESS BEACH on pages 7,8 & 9). For years, beach erosion has been a creeping problem in Cayman and for years, we kept kicking in the long grass…or out to sea. However, we are now at the ‘do-or-die stage’ more literally than metaphorically.

What Hurricane Helene has exposed and laid bare, are not only the foundations of properties allowed to be built too close to the shoreline, but it has also highlighted the fragility of tourism, a key pillar of the economy. Cayman’s main attractions are its beaches. No beaches, no tourism. It’s as simple as that.

Over the years we have heard of numerous plans to save our beaches. None have borne fruit…or sand.

The clock is ticking. The storms are getting worse. The sands are shifting - and they are shifting away from our shores.

It’s not a good picture.

Without beaches, we can kiss a sad goodbye to our tourism industry, the second pillar of our economy, our way of life and our standard of living. Remember, the beaches are not just for the enjoyment of tourists. They are critical to our way of life in Cayman for commerce and for our own enjoyment.

This is our now-or-never moment to save our beaches. Nature will continue to do what nature does. And nature (by its very nature) will do worse damage to our beaches unless we do our part to protect them. It requires bold, creative and decisive action led by government.

We We also need to understand the effects of sewage on the sand that is needed for beach replenishment but that’s another editorial for another day.

We can expect more damage from the next storm heading our way, perhaps in a matter of days.We must expect urgent action from government to cover and reclaim what the storms are exposing. No beaches. No tourism.

It’s as stark and real as that.