Gary Spaulding, Senior Gleaner Writer

Even before the venom of Hurricane Sandy descended on the eastern end of the Corporate Area, the picture was grim as early winds and rains conspired to make life miserable for the people of the beleaguered communities of Kintyre, Caribbean Terrace, and their environs.

The dire predictions of the people of Kintyre were realised quite early as the waters from the Hope River rose high above the level of the ford, splitting it in two, effectively separating the community from the Corporate Area.

Silently, the residents watched the deluge with a mixture of expectation, frustration and anxiety. A pipeline, which runs across the ford and supplies water to the people of Kintyre, was separated as a precautionary measure.

The police watched with the people as the heart-rending imagery of a man, identified as Garfield Campbell, traipsed across the waterlogged ford, a stick held aloft.

The people of Kintyre told The Gleaner that Campbell has not been the same since his mother and father were washed away during the passage of Hurricane Ivan in 2004.

They believed that the memory of that tragic day came flooding back, causing Campbell to react.

Over on the Palisadoes strip, waves rose high, menacingly on both sides of the peninsula, still under construction, the water blasting its way through the massive boulders which serve as a storm barrier.

The new roadway was holding up well as the deluge slid off.

CHOPPY SEAS

The Gleaner team, as well as curious onlookers, had to beat a hasty retreat from the choppy seas as the waves climbed the embankment, rushed on to the land and threatened to wash away everything.

Even the well-armed police, who were on hand in patrol units, stayed clear of the tempest.

As if that was not enough, high above the winds and waves, flames leaping from a massive fireball surged just as menacingly in the dark skies as fierce winds unleashed their venom just about everywhere, assaulting those with whom it came in contact.

The source of the explosion is unknown.

Nearby, the beleaguered Caribbean Terrace community had to be embracing the bulk of the ferocious waves that tumbled on to the few homes, which remain close to the sea; many seemed deserted.