PHILIPSBURG–The Government of St. Maarten has still to get a clear picture of the homeless figures since the passing of devastating Hurricane Irma nearly two months ago. The Daily Herald asked Minister of Social Affairs Emil Lee for an overview about the numbers of persons who lost their homes, are residing in emergency shelters and/or have filled for social assistance.
“The Department of Social Affairs is still compiling figures. There is a discussion between shelters and emergency housing. VROMI handles the building of the emergency homes, so a discussion needs to take place between my Ministry and VROMI [Ministry of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure – Ed.],” stated Lee during the weekly press briefing recently.
This newspaper continues to contact the Minister about the official figures compiled by Social Affairs. There are a number of people staying at the Little League Ballpark and the Festival Village. Emergency homes arrived on the navy ship Karel Doorman this past weekend, but there is no word on who will get these homes, or how that will be done.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/70585-lee-not-aware-of-homeless-figures
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