Applications for protection orders have soared in the aftermath of the murder of Chena Trott.

However Women's Resource Centre (WRC) executive director Penny Dill warned they were not the answer and Bermuda needed to get a grip on domestic violence.

Ms Trott - a 32-year-old mother of three - was stabbed to death in broad daylight outside the Crawl Hill Esso Tiger Mart on August 9.

Yesterday head bailiff Bob Smith said his staff had seen a big rise in applications for protection orders since the murder.

He said: "We have had four just today. People are saying it's better to be safe than sorry since this woman's unfortunate murder."

Ms Dill said the WRC had noticed the same rise. "We have had more people concerned they are at risk.

"We had a lot at the beginning of this week and we are trying to get court time.

"It was busy after Cup Match and it has continued to be busy since then.

"There's a lot more people calling to make appointments."

With a protection order the abuser is not allowed any contact with their accuser and are banned from their property and face arrest if they are in breach.

She said it was not easy to get a protection order unless a complaint had been filed with the Police.

"It's difficult, unless you have witnesses."

However she said it was possible to get a protection order granted by the court without a Police report if the attacker had a history of violence.

She said victims wanting a protection order could see a WRC paralegal. Victims would also be assessed for legal aid before having the hearing in family court. "I think we get in court quite quickly."

A temporary protection order lasting 28 days is the first step while a full protection order will last a year.

She said some attackers went into hiding in order not to get served the papers by bailiffs so private firms had to be hired to track them down.

Magistrates accepted notices in the paper telling attackers to appear in court if they could not be found, said Ms Dill.

"There's not much else you can do if the person is in hiding. Protection orders can help but they are not the answer."

She said individuals suffering abuse needed to get counselling to now how to deal with situations and get support from family and friends.

A lot of women are financially dependent on their attackers because they have children.

"Women need to educate themselves so they can realise they don't need to live in these type of circumstances."

And she said Bermuda needed to take domestic abuse seriously and children needed to be educated about what was appropriate behaviour.

She said it could help the attacker take the problem seriously but those with a previous criminal history had a higher risk of re-offending.

She said: "Some of them think they have nothing to lose."