Grenada’s mail from Canada has been diverted to England since Grenada closed its borders in March.
“We’re in a tail spin right now,” Director of Post Isaac Bhagwan told The Grenadian Voice on Tuesday.
“We are trying to get the route changed and have the mail diverted to the US,” he said.
On July 14, the Grenada Postal Corporation (GPC) received nine bags (204 pounds) of mail via sea freight from British Post, the first mail originating in Canada to arrive in Grenada since the borders were closed. On July 22, the GPC received eight bags (192 pounds) from British Post. These weekly shipments are expected to continue going forward.
“We are also asking Barbados to accept some mail on our behalf,” he added.
Officials from the GPC met with Grenada’s Airlift Committee on Monday to discuss alternative means of getting mail from international destinations to Grenada and the region.
“In the absence of LIAT we need to determine how we are getting mail delivered within the region,” he said.
Given the fluidity of air travel during the coronavirus pandemic, any schedules are tentative.
“We are making sure we have everything in place for when the backlog of mail arrives, as there is a huge backlog in Canada even with mail being diverted to England,” he said.
The meeting with the Airlift Committee confirmed that as of August 10, Air Canada will provide a weekly service to Grenada.
“Now that we know that, we need to mobilize accordingly,” he said.
During the lockdown the only international mail that was getting into Grenada was from the United States via Amerijet cargo service. In June the GPC and CanadaPost had explored the possibility of mail shipped to Grenada via Miami so it could arrive as cargo, but this proved too costly.
American Airlines and British Airways do not have any flights scheduled from England for Grenada until October, 2020.
