A group calling itself Concerned Citizens of Staniel Cay & Vicinity has written an open letter to Prime Minister Perry Christie thanking the government for repairing and reopening the Staniel Cay airport last week. Guardian Business has determined that the letter was sent on behalf of a number of outspoken Staniel Cay residents, all of whom had businesses that rely on the airport for survival.

"As you are aware, after our airport was abruptly closed on April 9, 2015, we struggled in limbo for months. As the situation became dire, we collected our voices in a petition letter to you on August 12, 2015. Amassing more than 5,200 signatures from more than 37 countries, we pleaded with the government for immediate repair and reopening, citing the critical issues of emergency access, medical access, safety and economic impact," the letter said. "Thank you for listening and taking action."

The letter lays out a timeline beginning with the September 3 announcement of a contract with Bahamas Hot Mix, with an estimated completion date of two months.

"The Hot Mix crew arrived immediately and worked tirelessly to complete the work. They have our eternal gratitude as well," the letter said.

The letter recounted that on November 18, 2015, Deputy Prime Minister Philip Davis traveled with officials from the Ministry of Works; Civil Aviation; the area's Member of Parliament Anthony Moss, and others to conduct a group inspection, make immediate final decisions and declare the Staniel Cay airport reopened, effective immediately.

"We are thrilled with the reopening of our critical airport, and with the quality condition of its new and improved runway, runoffs and apron. We are greatly relieved of the ever-present fear of emergencies and the burden of boat travel to our neighboring airstrip, especially as high winds have already begun this winter. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for accomplishing the airport repair and reopening without further delay and before any tragedy could strike," the letter said.

In the letter, the residents say they look forward to reopening to full hours of operation as soon as work concludes by the end of this week. Meanwhile, the airstrip is already full of activity again with planes coming and going throughout the day.
The letter was copied to Davis, Moss, Minister of Transport and Aviation Glenys Hanna-Martin and Minister of Tourism Obie H. Wilchcombe.

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