Irma's incursion: Tortola's hurricane hole – must see before and after photos of The Mooring

PARAQUITA BAY, TORTOLA, BVI – Paraquita Bay, Tortola's only hurricane hole. This is what it looked like just before Irma hit. –Facebook friend Jack Bush in a post to your Ed.'s FB page. Frank McCarthy, in another FB post to my page: These are FP's, Lagoon's, and Bavaria's. Most likely TMM, Horizon, BVI Yacht Charters and a few Moorings power cats. Tragic loss of boats. I fear that the BVI's may never be the same. Both photos courtesy of Ron Gurney.

As our FB friend Marcos Weinstein wrote, Devastating 'blow' to the BVI's and Paraquita Bay in particular. Much worse damage to more important things and people of course, but for a sailor, this is hard to see.

Amen to that, and here's hoping it's boats and other fixable things, not people and pets, that are taking the brunt of this astonishing storm. And we're only on Day 1. If there is any good news this afternoon, it's that it looks like the eye is passing north of Puerto Rico over the open ocean. But that does not bode well for the Bahamas.