Mayor Guiding Rebuilding Work at Hurricane Melissa's Ground Zero
The mayor of Black River – a community referred to as “ground zero” for the devastating storm – has shared the immense storm surges and extensive destruction wrought by the catastrophe.
Speaking on the traumatic ordeal, the mayor described riding out the intense hurricane at an emergency response center.
“The entire town of Black River is devastated,” he stated. “And that devastation is so catastrophic that the national leader designated this area as the worst-hit zone.”
Several people from the town are reported to have died, but Solomon mentioned receiving word of other fatalities that remain unconfirmed due to communication and transportation difficulties.
“The hurricane came around 8 a.m. and lasted for around several hours, during which we were battered with heavy winds and torrential rainfall,” he added.
“We experienced up to 4.8 metres of flooding at the response center. That was a bit scary for us, and we were praying that it would not increase any more, because we were on the upper level, and I tell you, when we saw the water climbing, it was a scary experience for us.”
The mayor stated that the town, located in the hard-hit southwest parish of St Elizabeth, is lacking running water and power, and most structures have lost their roofing. One official previously described the town as flooded, with more than 500,000 inhabitants lacking electricity. A landslide has blocked the main roads of a nearby area, where streets have been turned to muddy tracks. Locals are now sweeping water from their houses and trying to salvage their belongings.
Search and rescue operations and damage assessments have proven almost impossible because every one of the town’s transport and essential facilities such as fire, police, medical centers and supermarkets were “immensely damaged,” notes the mayor.
He is now concentrating on working to assist the most vulnerable, while also coping with the individual toll of the devastation.
“My vehicle was totally covered by water. My roof went, so I do understand the suffering that people are feeling, but what is a priority for me now is to focus on securing assistance for the most vulnerable at this point,” he explains.
The mayor believes that it will take billions of Jamaican dollars to restore the community after Melissa’s annihilation. At present, he states, the main goal is clearing blocked routes, which have cut off the town.
“Efforts are underway to clear the main roads and secondary routes here so that we can deliver aid in. The majority of our supermarkets, if not all, were impacted negatively so they will be unable to offer goods to persons who are in need at this moment,” he says.
National leadership has witnessed the devastation first-hand, with an flyover of the area revealing 80 to 90% of roofs in the area had been destroyed.
“This will be a enormous undertaking to restore this historic town. But although it is destroyed, we can envision a tomorrow of it emerging stronger and better,” he told local media.
“It will be accomplished. So maintain the optimism, keep hope alive, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he said.
