And the Coast Guard Forward Operating Base at Sarstoon is currently still out of commission, since it was almost swallowed by the water. Massive erosion of the land caused it to be a danger to the officers stationed there, so they've been traveling back and forth from Sarstoon to Barranco.
The Minister of Defense, Florencio Marin, gave us an update on the renovating of the base.
Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of National Defence
"You noticed that we went to the house for the financing, so now we begin to start the construction of it. I don't anticipate that to take more than 8 weeks. I don't want to held for a firm timeline, but there is a priority for us to get it operating again. It is a critical operating base for us to have operational."
Reporter
"What changes were made in terms of making this base more climate resilient? We wouldn't want to be seeing the same thing happen a couple year or so?"
Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of National Defence
"I fully agree with you. I think that it was built hastily in the past. Of course, climate change is here it is affecting the whole coast. The FOB is no exception, but right now one of the main part of the funding and the funding is not to fully built a new one. We're looking for financing down the road. The funding right now is to buttress this one so that it can become operational again, more important for the safety of the sailors and the soldiers who will be operating it."
