Prince Edward spent nearly an hour in a private meeting with families of the victims of Fabian before an emotional wreath-laying ceremony within sight of the Causeway where the four perished last month.

The Prince, who had offered to lead the sombre ceremony during his whistle-stop tour of the Island, tossed the wreath into the waters at Grotto Bay as around 20 family members tearfully looked on from a ocean-side balcony.

The moving ceremony was the focal point of the Prince's visit, which had begun four hours earlier when he touched down at Bermuda International Airport.

He stepped down from his private jet to be greeted by Governor Sir John Vereker and Premier Alex Scott as he began his second official visit to the Island, his first was back in 1992.

Following a tour of St. George's, which included a stop at the St. George's Preparatory School, the Prince, formally known as the Earl of Wessex, travelled by Police launch to Grotto Bay Hotel.

He then shed his official party and headed alone into a private meeting with the families of Nicole O'Connor, Manuel Pacheco, Gladys Saunders and Stephen Symons, who all perished when a Police car and a civilian vehicle were swept off the Causeway on September 5 during the height of Fabian.

The Prince was understood to be “impressed with the bravery” of those he met.

Ashen-faced, he then moved on to the Police launch, the Blue Heron, before heading out into the ocean where the wreath was tossed overboard with the Prince solemnly and respectfully bowing his head.

The tearful family members looked on, many arm in arm, with Franzine Burgess, mother of Ms O'Connor, visibly suffering the strain of six weeks of waiting for news of her daughter. Even the comforting arms of family members did little to reduce the immense grief she obviously still feels.

The meeting and ceremony were well received by family members with Monica Pacheco, who lost her home and husband in the storm, telling The Royal Gazette: “He was very understanding and down to earth. This isn't a meeting that we had asked for, but, yes, it was nice. He seemed to be very interested in what had happened and how we were coping.”

She added, however, that she would have liked the wreath to have been dropped nearer the actual site where the four were swept away by the storm.

Other families also seemed pleased to be able to find some form of closure in the ceremony, which was a simple, if poignant, tribute to the four who perished.

Police Commissioner Jonathan Smith, whose force suffered their first ever multiple loss of life when the storm struck on that fateful Friday, was grateful to the Prince for the ceremony and believed it was an important step in dealing with the tragedy.

“This ceremony can only assist everyone in coping with this terrible tragedy,” Mr. Smith told The Royal Gazette.

“I would like to thank His Royal Highness for the contribution he has made, it was something that he was very keen to do and I think it can only help us all find closure.

“This is one of a number of steps we are taking to cope with what has happened but I thought it was a very sombre and dignified ceremony.”

The wreath-laying ceremony was the final public event of the Prince's first day of touring the Island which had begun, after an hour's delay, with a trip to St.George's where he surveyed hurricane damage at the World Heritage Site.

The Prince comes to the Island of his own accord, according to the Governor.

“I'm particularly delighted at this visit as the Earl's own initiative that has brought him here,” said Sir John. “He wanted to have a chance to show the concern of the Royal Family for what has happened in Bermuda and respect for those who were bereaved.”

And the Premier was careful to keep a sombre tone while keen to boast of the Island's success in putting itself back together.

“It is of course a great honour for any head of state to receive a member of the Royal Family,” said Mr. Scott.

“We are pleased to be able to show His Royal Highness how we have coped with Hurricane Fabian. This is an exceptional island in the way that we have, literally, weathered the storm.

“There is a great sense of pride here in what we have achieved and we are only to willing to show the world how we have undertaken this rehabilitation.

“Bermuda can hold its head up high but there is also a great sense of loss.”

The Prince's tour continues today with a tree-planting ceremony at Government House before he meets young sailors competing in the Junior Gold Cup at Barr's Bay Park. Then he will meet round-the-world sailor Alan Paris at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute before moving on to Spittal Pond and John Smith's Bay.

The public part of the visit concludes with a visit to Summerhaven to meet residents and plant a tree.

He returns to Britain on British Airways later this evening.