Mayor Leading Rebuilding Work at Hurricane Melissa's Ground Zero
The local leader of Black River – an area described as “ground zero” for the devastating storm – has detailed the monstrous storm surges and widespread devastation wrought by the catastrophe.
Reflecting on the harrowing experience, the mayor recalled enduring the Category 5 storm at an emergency operating centre.
“Our community of this area is in ruins,” he said. “The destruction is so catastrophic that the prime minister classified this area as the worst-hit zone.”
Several people from Black River are confirmed dead, but Solomon noted receiving word of other fatalities that are still being verified due to connectivity and travel challenges.
“The hurricane arrived around 8 a.m. and lasted for around several hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and a lot of rain,” he explained.
“We got up to 4.8 metres of flooding at the emergency operating centre. That was a bit scary for us, and we were hoping that it would not increase any more, because we were on the second floor, and I tell you, when we saw the water climbing, it was a scary experience for us.”
The mayor stated that Black River, located in the severely affected southwest region of St Elizabeth, is lacking water and power, and most structures have had their roofs. One official earlier described the town as flooded, with more than half a million residents without power. A landslide has obstructed the main roads of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been turned to mud pits. Residents are now sweeping water from their houses and trying to salvage their belongings.
Search and rescue operations and damage assessments have proven extremely difficult because all the town’s transport and critical services such as firefighting, police, medical centers and supermarkets were “severely damaged,” notes the mayor.
He is now concentrating on trying to help the most vulnerable, while also coping with the personal impact of the disaster.
“The mayor's car was totally covered by water. My roof was lost, so I fully grasp the pain that people are feeling, but what is a key focus for me now is to focus on getting aid relief for the most vulnerable at this point,” he says.
The mayor believes that it will take billions of Jamaican dollars to rebuild the community after Melissa’s annihilation. For now, he states, the priority is removing debris from blocked routes, which have isolated the town.
“Efforts are underway to get the major thoroughfares and secondary routes here so that we can deliver relief supplies in. Most of our stores, if not all, were impacted negatively so they will be unable to provide supplies to persons who are in need at this time,” he says.
National leadership has seen the damage personally, with an aerial tour of the region showing 80 to 90% of roofs in the area had been lost.
“This will be a massive task to rebuild this historic town. But although it is destroyed, we can envision a future of it emerging stronger and better,” he told reporters.
“It will be accomplished. So keep the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will rebuild better,” he said.
