The surfertoday.com website reports on the destruction of the “House of Waves” surf school in a fire at Encuentro Beach, Cabarete last month.
The report says that all surfing equipment was stolen and the structure was completely gutted. It quotes local residents as saying that they heard an explosion and witnessed the flames as they engulfed the wood storage shack.
Surfertoday.com quotes Jesmarin Puente, surf school owner and president of the Dominican Surfing Federation as saying that, “Our goal for ‘House of Waves’ was to work in harmony with the other surf schools, to provide access to surfing for kids with little resources, to promote the protection and care of the environment, and create a safe and fun place for families to gather and practice surfing”.
The ‘House of Waves’ supported several community initiatives, including regular beach cleanups, medical missions, youth training programs and the International Surfing day.
Jesmarin Puente is a national surfing champion, certified trainer and manager of several pro contests in Latin America. Plans to reopen the surf school are currently under way.
www.surfertoday.com/surfing/8693-vandals-destroy-house-of-waves-in-the-dominican-republic
http://dr1.com/premium/news/2013/dnews040213.shtml