Simpson Bay, St. Maarten – The Mold Remediation and Surface Removal Decontamination process is underway at the terminal building of the Princess Juliana International Airport – SXM. The scope of the work will also include the installation of HEPA air filtration units and portable humidifiers to dry any remaining wet building materials.
The Texas-based company, BMS CAT International, was awarded the contract to carry out the mold remediation work, as the terminal building sustained severe damages following the 2017 hurricanes. During this process, the company will clean all the mold contaminated items on the ground floor of the airport.
The Terminal Reconstruction project includes, “Package One,” the first phase of which is the remediation method. It also encompasses the cleaning of filters, light fixtures and any item that has remained in the terminal building after the internal demolition.
The Mold Remediation and Surface Removal Decontamination project has also contributed towards the employment of over 50 local workers.
The Managing Board has declared that the project is on schedule. It is the intention to have a seamless transfer of the Departure and Arrival Operations to the ground floor of the Terminal Building in November 2018. The SXM Airport will offer Wi-Fi services and be fully air conditioned.
The completion of “Package One,” is much anticipated as the peak season for passenger traffic at SXM Airport is from December 15 to April 15 (Winter Season). Despite normal seasonality, the numbers of SXM departing passengers are increasing as St. Maarten/St. Martin tourism recovers from the hurricanes of 2017. For instance, in June 2016 SXM departing passengers were 62% of what they were in March 2016, but in 2018, the June average daily passenger volume was 106% of March 2018. This change reflects the ongoing restoration of hotel & time share rooms and the influence it has on SXM passenger volumes. In June 2018 there were 26 commercial airlines serving SXM with 22 catering to passengers and 4 for the carriage of cargo.
