the east of the Island, bringing high winds but nothing like the damage which would have occurred had she remained on her earlier course.

So we can all give thanks today that Gert was not worse. This storm fell somewhere between a bad winter storm and a tropical storm, but was nothing like the scale of Hurricane Emily in 1987 or even Hurricane Felix in 1995.

Still, there are some people in discomfort today, without electricity and in a very few cases without shelter.

But Bermuda for the most part weathered Gert very well. The lessons of Emily have been learned and expanded on and the management of the emergency response seems to have been relatively good.

This was the first time that Home Affairs Minister Paula Cox had chaired the EMO and she and the other senior officials involved seem to have done well.

Some aspects of the lead-up to the storm could be better managed.

Many Bermudians seem to have forgotten the one key lesson of hurricane preparedness -- get ready early. Hardware stores and grocery stores were relatively quiet over the weekend as Gert loomed ever closer. On Monday, stores were jammed as people seemed to wake up to the threat of the storm.

It is also clear that people are not keeping trees clear of power lines -- resulting in far more power cuts than a storm of this size warranted.

And many Hamilton businesses closed their doors early (the right decision) but at the same time (the wrong decision) causing gridlock in the city and on the roads out of Hamilton.

Leaving that aside, response to the storm has been good. The emergency services -- as usual -- performed selflessly, especially the Belco crews, who go out in dangerous conditions at all hours of the day and night while most people remain safely at home.

And the Weather Service did a good job of keeping people informed of the size and threat of the storm. Some people might argue that the Weather Service exaggerated the threat of the storm; but it is better to be cautious and safe than complacent and sorry.

DOLPHIN'S FATE EDT Dolphins' fate Perhaps the most compelling and potentially tragic story of the day remains the fate of the dolphins at Dolphin Quest who were seemingly left to risk their lives in the storm when earlier actions could have seen them moved to safer waters.

Assuming the dolphins survive and return -- and sightings yesterday suggest that they are all right -- better arrangements must be put in place to ensure their safety early.

As photographer Graeme Outerbridge said, the treatment of the mammals confirmed the worst fears of those who questioned the development of Dolphin Quest, which has both scientific and commercial sides. Now it is up to the management of the site to ensure that it can be run well and compassionately.