ICB Bora Bora Damage info

[Ninjachyck]

:eek: Just a heads up for those staying on Bora Bora....

 

Weekend swell badly damaged 78 homes, 1 hotel on Bora Bora

 

(Tahitipresse) - A three-meter (9.8-foot) high swell over the weekend badly damaged 78 homes and one luxury hotel on the Leeward Island of Bora Bora, the French State reported Monday. There were no reports of injuries or deaths.

 

The southern portion of Bora Bora involving Matira Point and the commune of Anau was the most severely hit as the swell caused the lagoon to overflow, the rising water flooding over-the-water bungalows and shoreline properties and washing away parts of beaches, François Proisy, the French State administrator for the Leeward Islands, told Tahitipresse. Newly arrived French High Commissioner Anne Boquet asked Proisy to visit Bora Bora and prepare a report on damage.

French Polynesia President Oscar Temaru is scheduled to visit Bora Bora Tuesday to inspect the damage.

 

Nearly all of InterContinental hotel’s 64 bungalows damaged

 

“Houses located at the extreme edge of the beach, a meter (3.2 feet) from the lagoon, were almost destroyed,” Proisy said. He was accompanied on his visit to Bora Bora by Lt. Col. Denis Musson, head of the French civil defense system. After meeting with local officials, they reported 78 homes were destroyed or partially destroyed. Some 10 homes and family pensions next to the beach were hit by a series of waves created by the swell, which hit between Saturday night and Sunday morning.

The 64-over-the-water bungalow InterContinental Moana Beach Bora Bora at Matira Point was the only hotel badly damaged by the swell, Proisy said. Nearly all of the bungalows were damaged, he said.

 

InterContinental official estimates 6 months needed to rebuild, repair

 

Several bungalows built on cement pilings were pierced and will need to be rebuilt, said Philippe Brovelli, regional director of InterContinental in French Polynesia. He estimated it would take six months to get the hotel back into operation.

Prior to the weekend, the InterContinental Moana Beach had enough advance reservations to fill the hotel for the next two months. That business will be lost.

The 150 guests in the hotel when the swell struck were sent to undamaged hotels on Bora Bora and to InterContinental Resorts on Tahiti and Moorea.

The 150-room Club Méditerranée on Bora Bora reported little damage, but added it had problems with electricity and water supply.

The 54-room Hotel Bora Bora reported the shutting down of five over-the-water bungalows and five beach bungalows for at least a week so that flooding damage could be cleaned up and repaired.

[maygoddess]

Yeah..this was crazy...luckily our TP sailing missed this wave by 2 days. We spent 2 full port days in Bora Bora..the waves hit just as we were leaving Moorea for our return to papeete..I remember the ICB...and met some couples who were staying there when it hit and transferred to Moorea where we were post cruise..

 

I can imagine these waves may have effected the 9/11 sailing just after us as the seas between Moorea and Papeete were still quite wavy after these swells..be interesting to hear how it went for them!

[Ninjachyck]

Well it's good news that you guys just missed it! We are pre-cruise in Tahiti, and it wasn't nearly as hard hit, so we'll be fine. I'm curious about the 9/11 sailing as well...:confused: