City Leader Guiding Recovery Efforts at Hurricane Melissa's Ground Zero

The local leader of Black River – a community described as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has detailed the immense storm surges and widespread devastation wrought by the disaster.

Speaking on the traumatic experience, the mayor recalled enduring the intense hurricane at an emergency response center.

“Our community of this area is devastated,” he said. “And that devastation is so catastrophic that the prime minister designated this area as the worst-hit zone.”

Several people from the town are confirmed dead, but the mayor mentioned receiving word of other deaths that are still being verified due to communication and transportation difficulties.

“The hurricane came around 8 a.m. and continued for around nine hours, during which we were battered with heavy winds and torrential rainfall,” he added.

“We got up to 16ft of water at the emergency operating centre. That was a frightening moment for us, and we were hoping that it would not rise any more, because we were on the second floor, and I tell you, when we saw the water rising, it was a terrifying experience for us.”

Solomon explained that Black River, situated in the severely affected south-western region of St Elizabeth, is without running water and power, and the majority of buildings have lost their roofing. An authority previously characterized the town as flooded, with more than half a million inhabitants lacking electricity. A mudslide has blocked the main roads of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been turned to mud pits. Locals are now sweeping water from their homes and attempting to salvage their belongings.

Search and rescue operations and evaluations have proven extremely difficult because every one of the town’s transport and essential facilities such as firefighting, police, hospitals and supermarkets were “severely damaged,” says the mayor.

He is now concentrating on trying to help the most vulnerable, while also dealing with the personal impact of the devastation.

“My vehicle was totally submerged by water. My roof was lost, so I do understand the suffering that people are experiencing, but what is a priority for me now is to focus on securing assistance for the most at-risk at this time,” he says.

The mayor believes that it will take billions of Jamaican dollars to restore the community after Melissa’s destruction. At present, he says, the priority is removing debris from impassable roads, which have cut off the town.

“Efforts are underway to clear the main roads and secondary routes here so that we can deliver relief supplies in. Most of our stores, if not all, were impacted negatively so they won’t be able to provide supplies to persons who are in need at this moment,” he adds.

National leadership has seen the damage first-hand, with an flyover of the region revealing the vast majority of buildings in the area had been lost.

“It is going to be a massive task to restore this historic town. But although it is destroyed, we can vision a future of it rising stronger and improved,” he told reporters.

“It will be accomplished. So keep the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he affirmed.