Skelton-Cline Urges Residents to Prepare
On his ZBVI radio programme on October 14, 2025, Premier Natalio Skelton-Cline warned that the British Virgin Islands face impacts from both internal problems and external geopolitical tensions and urged residents to prepare. He specifically told listeners to stock basic supplies—food, water and energy essentials—citing the rapid depletion of shelves during COVID-19 as a warning.
Premier Natalio Skelton-Cline used his weekly ZBVI 780 AM programme, Honestly Speaking, on October 14, 2025, to warn residents that the Virgin Islands must brace for disruptions driven by both local dynamics and actions by external powers. ‘‘We are in trouble,’’ he told listeners during a broadcast titled ‘‘We are in trouble,’’ stressing that decisions made beyond the Territory’s control will have local consequences.
Skelton-Cline said the Territory already feels the effects of international conflicts and heightened military activity in the region and urged people to focus on the basics: food, water and energy. ‘‘We have to do what we have to do and brace ourselves for some of what is happening and some of what is going to happen.
And the basics… food, water, energy; three basic needs for any country,’’ he said, calling on residents to prepare their families rather than wait on government action. He cited the COVID-19 experience — when he said it took ‘‘48 hours to clear all the grocery stores’’ — as a reminder of how quickly supplies can be exhausted.
Skelton-Cline recommended that households put away non-perishable foods and staples such as toilet paper, canned goods, rice, flour and sugar, and warned that the current situation ‘‘is not getting ready to happen, it’s happening.’’ The premier’s comments come as the United States has increased its naval and air presence in the Caribbean, an effort Washington describes as counternarcotics and regional security operations.
Reports of U.S. warships and surveillance aircraft operating from nearby territories, and controversial incidents involving strikes on vessels suspected of trafficking, have heightened regional tensions and raised concerns about the potential for confrontations that could affect shipping and supplies.
For BVI residents, the warning underscores long-standing vulnerabilities: the Territory relies heavily on imported food, fuel and other essentials, and disruptions to air and sea links can quickly affect availability and prices. While Skelton-Cline urged individual preparedness, residents are also advised to monitor official guidance from local emergency management and government channels, secure necessary medications, check generator fuel and water supplies where possible, and make a household plan for short-term supply interruptions.
The premier’s appeal was framed as a practical call to action: prepare now for likely short-term disruption, remain informed through trusted official sources, and take basic steps to protect households while authorities continue to monitor regional developments.
Primary source: VINO