Keith lands a blow, Belize comes up fighting

In October 1998 when the hurricane known as Mitch pulled up short of Belize and unleashed its category five wrath elsewhere, Belizeans let out a collective sigh of relief, safe in the knowledge that we had dodged a heavy calibre bullet. Two years later Mitch’s younger cousin named Keith finally did what Mitch could not…and while the gunshot was not fatal, it did cause some serious damage. Hardest hit were the resort communities of San Pedro and Caye Caulker where numerous buildings were destroyed, but amazingly no fatalities have yet been reported. Belize City experienced winds of perhaps 60 to 75 miles per hour, which blew down trees and damaged roofs. Numerous light poles were knocked down and many parts of town were left without electricity, Channel Five included. This newscast–or what passes for a newscast–was prepared using a small portable generator. As a result, many of the pictures you’ll see tonight come unedited, quickly patched together as our reporters and cameramen return from the field. We’ll begin with a montage of images recorded by News Five videographers Brent Toombs and Rick Romero, while the storm lashed Belize City.

(Montage of heavy rain, and flooded areas.)