Mayor Guiding Recovery Work at Hurricane Melissa's Epicenter
This local leader of Black River – an area referred to as “the epicenter” for the devastating storm – has shared the immense storm surges and extensive destruction wrought by the disaster.
Reflecting on the traumatic ordeal, the mayor described riding out the intense storm at an emergency response center.
“Our community of Black River is devastated,” he stated. “The destruction is so catastrophic that the national leader designated this area as ground zero.”
Several people from Black River are confirmed dead, but Solomon mentioned hearing reports of other deaths that are still being verified due to connectivity and travel difficulties.
“Storm Melissa arrived around 8 a.m. and continued 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 water at the emergency operating centre. It was a frightening moment for us, and we were praying that it would not increase any more, because we were on the upper level, and frankly, when we saw the water climbing, it was a scary moment for us.”
Solomon stated that the town, situated in the hard-hit southwest parish of St Elizabeth, is without water and power, and the majority of structures have lost their roofing. An authority earlier described the town as under water, with over half a million residents without power. A landslide has obstructed the main roads of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been reduced to muddy tracks. Residents are now removing water from their homes and attempting to salvage their possessions.
Search and rescue operations and evaluations have proven extremely difficult because all the town’s transport and essential facilities such as fire, law enforcement, hospitals and supermarkets were “immensely damaged,” says the mayor.
He is now concentrating on trying to help the neediest residents, while also dealing with the individual toll of the disaster.
“My vehicle was totally covered by water. My roof was lost, so I fully grasp the suffering that persons are experiencing, but what is a priority for me now is to focus on securing aid relief for the most vulnerable at this time,” he explains.
The mayor believes that it will take billions of Jamaican dollars to restore the community after the hurricane's destruction. For now, he says, the main goal is removing debris from impassable roads, which have cut off the town.
“Efforts are underway to clear the major thoroughfares and critical lateral roads here so that we can deliver aid in. Most of our stores, if not all, were severely affected so they won’t be able to offer goods to individuals who are in dire straits at this moment,” he adds.
National leadership has seen the devastation personally, with an aerial tour of the area revealing 80 to 90% of roofs in the area had been lost.
“It is going to be a enormous task to restore Black River. But while it is destroyed, we can envision a tomorrow of it rising stronger and improved,” he informed reporters.
“We will get it done. So keep the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will get through this, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he affirmed.
