Despite the destruction caused by Hurricane Fabian, the Department of Planning has so far seen only a "trickle" of emergency planning applications, said director Rudolph Hollis.

The department prepared for the hurricane by allowing applicants to fast-track the process of getting permission to make repairs.

This was done by expanding the prerequisites for receiving same-day emergency planning permission to cover damage caused by the hurricane.

Applicants would receive permission after demonstrating the damage caused - a process which at times does take more than one day if significant structural damage is involved.

From September 9-30 the department had received only 28 requests for fast-track planning permission in the wake of the hurricane.

One reason Mr. Hollis offered was that insurance issues were holding applicants up.

The applications could cover any damage from the very slight to an entire house, said Mr. Hollis. However, he added, applicants needed to provide details and a full set of drawings for permission to be granted, and even then permission was only granted if the plans were identical to those before the hurricane.

For that reason people with severe structural damage had not used the fast-track system, he said.

"If the entire house was damaged, they would want some changes to be made."

The department had imposed no specific time constraints on the fast-track process, he said, however its necessity will be reassessed in about three months time.

Reassessment of what the department can do in the future regarding the threat of storms has already started, he added.

Technical officers were out taking photos of structural damage and gathering information immediately after the hurricane, and it is now just a matter of compiling and analysing the information.