Charlestown, Nevis
August 02, 2007
For Immediate Public Release
Premier of Nevis the Hon. Joseph Parry said of the grief borne by Nevis from the MV Christina Disaster 37 years ago, he said the sad event which had the single greatest impact on the maritime history of St. Kitts and Nevis, also brought many new beginnings for the people of Nevis.
He made the comment during a memorial service to observe the 37th anniversary of the MV Christina Disaster in which 233 persons, mostly Nevisians, lost their lives on a voyage from Basseterre en route to Charlestown. Ninety passengers survived the ill fated trip.
“We have a lot to thank God for even in the face of that disaster we were able to pick ourselves up and move forward”¦It seems to me that that [disaster] also gave us an opportunity to have a new beginning because many of those persons who went abroad were able to send money back to build homes, they were able to send money back to help our children go to school and now we have another chance.
“We have our own government, we have our economy and we are in a position to develop ourselves. I do believe that even though I say it myself, we have done exceedingly well over the past 37 years and there is a lot we can point to as having achieved as Nevisians. So at that time [even if] it felt like the end of the world, you had a new beginning in culture, a new beginning – a struggle for government which we have, a new beginning in looking after ourselves and we have done a great job of it,” he said.
