BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - When disaster hits in the Caribbean, Barbadians take pride in reaching out to help. Still, we do not seem to understand that the disasters which have left a path of destruction across the Caribbean can also happen here. Just reflect on David in Dominica in 1979, Gilbert in Jamaica in 1988 and Ivan in Grenada in 2004. An average tropical storm, Tomas, brought so much damage to our island in 2010 that the houses of some people are, up to this day, not in a habitable state. Just imagine if we were to be hit by hurricane-force winds. It would be a nightmare since much of our housing stock cannot stand up against the elements in such circumstances.