In what may be the greatest single loss of Barbadian historical records in living memory, a devastating fire swept through a block of the colonial-era building housing the nation’s archives, prompting a tearful outburst from the minister responsible for preserving the documents, and a vow to recover any salvageable materials.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office with responsibility for culture Senator Dr Shantal Munro-Knight said the government would accelerate its eight-year-long digitisation of critical records to prevent future losses. But initial investigations suggest that promise has come too late for records of the vestry system, the country’s earliest form of local government, and the Bridgetown city council which was abolished in 1969.
Also gone are records of the colonial general which dates back to 1844 and the mental asylum which opened in 1893 – precursors to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the Psychiatric Hospital.
The blaze, believed to have been sparked by a lightning strike in the early hours of Tuesday morning, ravaged Block D, a two-storey building housing the archives department’s repository in Black Rock, St Michael.
“It’s an emotional morning,” a visibly moved Senator Munro-Knight told reporters. “We were able to retrieve some records, and the team is already on site trying to salvage those records. But this is still a major blow for us.”
Ingrid Thompson, chief archivist, said the “majority of the records were destroyed” in the fire.
“Some of these records included vestry records, city council records, and records of the mental hospital and general hospital. The impact is significant because, in most cases, these documents are irreplaceable,” she said.
Thompson, who has worked at the archives for 38 years, revealed that the archives department had been in the process of procuring a fire suppression system to better protect the fragile records before the disaster struck.
“We were procuring a fire suppression system to protect the records – although the fire officer informed us that due to the lightning strike, it actually tore away the galvanised sheets from the building,” she said. “So the fire suppression system would not really have worked as it needed to be contained; the gas needed to be contained within the building.”
Despite the devastation, the chief archivist said staff would continue working from other areas of the archives facility while recovery efforts are underway in the burnt-out block.
The fire came just two weeks after several bound records had been moved to another building as part of an ongoing digitisation drive – a move that saved them from the flames. Munro-Knight confirmed plans were already underway to upgrade the infrastructure before the blaze struck.
“We had begun to work with the Fire Service and were planning to commence construction of a new archives building by November, which would feature enhanced fire suppression and hurricane-resistant facilities,” she said. “While the fire is a setback, it has underscored the urgency of our efforts.”
The archives fire has dealt a blow to the government’s ambitious plans for the “archival economy” that would have capitalised on Barbados’s historical records and documents.
Senator Munro-Knight, who was moved to tears as she spoke about the impact of the fire on those plans, had outlined the vision at the Heritage Month launch just over two weeks ago. She had lamented the loss of ancestral records suffered by other countries like Liberia, and expressed concern about the vulnerability of Barbados’ cultural heritage to climate change.
“We had a visit from Liberians who have lost all their ancestral records. We are fortunate in Barbados to have our National Archives, but imagine those being wiped out by floods or hurricanes,” she said on June 2. “Our records and cultural artefacts are very susceptible to heat and water damage. Imagine losing these treasures in a moment.”
On Tuesday, the minister vowed the government’s plan to create an “archival economy” by digitising records and making them accessible would continue apace.
“We are determined to build an archival economy that not only preserves our records but also makes them accessible for future generations. While we have lost some important documents, we are committed to assessing the damage and continuing with our digitisation efforts,” she said.
“The support from the public has been heartening, and I want to reassure everyone that all is not lost. We will rebuild and strengthen our archives to better safeguard our national heritage.”
Minister of Home Affairs and Information Wilfred Abrahams promised a full investigation into the cause of the blaze.
Divisional Officer Marlon Small said that from initial reports, “the fire was caused by a lightning strike which ignited the roof of the structure and due to the condition of the records there – they’re very old records – there was rapid fire spread throughout the structure”.
“This is a tragedy,” Abrahams said, even as he applauded the Barbados Fire Service for containing and extinguishing the fire that was reported just one minute before midnight.
While firefighters continued damping down hotspots, government officials were already looking to the future and the challenge of recovering and replacing the lost documents wherever possible.
“We are actively working with the Fire Service and have engaged an engineering firm to assess the damage and implement immediate recovery steps,” said Minister Munro-Knight. “Our team is poised to secure the existing building and retrieve any materials that may still be intact once we receive clearance from fire officials.”
Senator Munro-Knight emphasised that digitisation remained a key priority to safeguard Barbados’ historical records against future disasters.
“We have been working on digitising records, including the Transatlantic Slave records, which are crucial for our historical documentation,” she stated. “This unfortunate event has reinforced our resolve to push ahead with the digitisation process and ensure that our historical records are protected.”
The archives are also home to baptism, marriage and death records, deeds and wills.
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