Pictured here are rafts on the Rio Grande in Portland still in need of repairs. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Portland:

Rio Grande rafting, Portland's premier tourist attraction and one of Jamaica's oldest, is plunging into extinction, as recent hurricanes, compounded by frequent torrential rainfall, have virtually put a halt to its operations.

At Grant's Level, a raft stand which was destroyed during the passage of hurricanes Dennis and Emily in 2005, still lies in ruins, with only its foundation intact as a reminder to many that it once existed.

The walls of the building lie in the nearby Rio Grande, and are used as a makeshift rock to stand on by fishermen, casting lines into the water.

The devastation of the Grant's Level raft stand is not the only dilemma facing operators of the facility, as more than half the fleet of rafting vessels have either been destroyed or washed away during torrential rainfall, which occurs frequently in the Rio Grande Valley.

Vessels lost

According to Victor Marlowe, a raft captain at Grant's Level, in 2004 during the passage of hurricane Ivan, 130 of the estimated 175 rafting vessels were lost.

Marlowe went on to explain that in 2005, during hurricanes Dennis and Emily, 140 rafting vessels out of approximately 190 were also destroyed.

Another problem which has seriously dented operations at that facility, is the deplorable state of the roads leading to the Berrydale raft stand.

Despite appeals made by its operators for assistance to repair that roadway, no response has been forthcoming.

As a result, many tour bus operators are reluctant to travel to that section because motor vehicle parts are proving too costly.

Many, like Basil Bunting, Anthony Collins, along with another raft captain, who gave his name only as Bungo, adopted rafting as their livelihood from as far back as 1955, when green bananas were transported down the river aboard the bamboo rafting vessels.

Today the three men agree rafting is dying a slow, painful death and will continue to do so unless there is major intervention from Government in addressing the Rio Grande situation.

The men also agreed that the move by others to take up new occupations is understandable and they are in solidarity with them. They, however, noted that age does not allow them to follow suit.

Others, like Rose Marie Deans, a front-desk receptionist at the Berrydale raft stand, remains fearful the job she has turned up for during the past 10 years will soon cease to exist.

The general feeling and opinion of many persons, including those with memories of gliding along the river as patrons, is that a popular attraction like Rio Grande rafting should be operated and controlled by Government.

- Gareth Davis