Jonique Gaynor, Staff Reporter

Necessity is the mother of invention. This house in Rocky Point, Clarendon, is held together with ropes. - Photos by Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

Residents of Portland Cottage and Rocky Point in Clarendon had an unwelcome feeling of déjà vu when Hurricane Dean struck Sunday night. Three years ago, storm surges from Hurricane Ivan swept through the community resulting in loss of lives and damage to property.

Although no lives are lost this time, residents say it is much worse. They told The Gleaner that Ivan had been much kinder.

The seaside communities were pounded by the fierce Category Four hurricane, which flooded roads and homes, and left a trail of rubble, loose zinc, dead animals and dazed residents, in its wake.

Several confused residents sat cluelessly in front of their homes, wondering how best to start the rebuilding process. Eulalee Thompson, a mother of seven, was one such resident. She told The Gleaner, "All a mi house mash up. It neva stay like dis afta Ivan. All a mi roof gone." She also lamented the destruction of several bags of chicken feed, her source of income. "Mi sell di likkle chicken feed fi help mi self an di whole a dem wet up. I don't know where to start, how to start or what to do. Mi fridge in deh right now pan di face." Thompson also lost all the back-to-school supplies she had purchased.

As the news team ventured farther inside the community, the stories were all the same - horror stories of 10-foot waves rushing through homes, destroying furniture and leaving piles of mud. There was hardly an untouched home in Portland Cottage and even the new houses that were built after Hurricane Ivan, were unable to withstand the force. They too were left roofless and without doors.

Residents were seen helping others

A woman arrives at the Bustamante High School hurricane shelter in Clarendon, just before the island began experiencing the gusts and rains of Hurricane Dean. - Junior Dowie/Staff Photographer

Several residents were seen helping others, transporting furniture and attempting to clear the road of fallen trees and utility poles, while others worked diligently to recreate at least some semblance of a roof.

Not everyone was in a benevolent mood, however, as several looters used the opportunity to make people's property their own. Another group of men found entertainment in capturing and killing two crocodiles and displaying them rather prominently. The creatures had apparently made their way to land from the nearby swamp.

The nearby fishing community of Rocky Point was equally devastated. Fallen trees, sheets of zinc, washed-up boats and downed power lines all but blocked the streets. Several houses were flattened and one in particular was held together by ropes.

The designated shelters in the Portland Cottage community were filled to capacity on Sunday night, but as dawn approached, the residents returned home to assess the damage.

The threat of more rain hastened the hammers and quickened the footsteps of those who were transporting clothes and furniture. Others, however, too depressed to be concerned, sat staring into the distance.

A table is all that's left standing after the building in which it was housed was blown down in Rocky Point,Clarendon.