According to the Department of Disaster Management (DDM), as of 11:00 am today, the centre of Tropical Storm Laura was located near latitude 17.8 North, longitude 66.8 West, or about 20 miles southwest of Ponce, Puerto Rico as Laura drifts west near 18 mph.

No serious damages - Premier Fahie

The passage of the storm also brought no serious damages nor emergency calls with roads relatively cleared today, Premier and Minister of Finance, Hon Andrew A. Fahie (R1) reported in a statement released this afternoon.

He extended gratitude to public officers and others who worked to ensure that all the preparedness measures were done in an orderly fashion.

Gratitude "also to you the people for doing your part to prepare and be ready. Each of you played a role in getting us safely through Tropical Storm Laura," Hon Fahie said.

The Premier reminded that while the territory navigates the 2020 Atlantic Hurricane Season, people must be aware of the realities of the ‘New Regular’ of living and working with COVID-19.

Marine Warning in effect

"People of the Virgin Islands we must remain vigilant. We must keep our guards up. We must practice the wearing of masks, frequent hand washing and sanitising, and social distancing. We must obey the protocols that are in place to keep us all safe. Vigilance is very important as we stem this important tide together with God as our GPS," he said.

With the storm gone, DDM noted that marine warnings remain in place for both small craft and sea bathers.

"Small craft should stay in port and sea bathers should avoid waters at this time," they said.