Mayor Leading Rebuilding Work at Storm Melissa's Worst-Hit Area
This mayor of the town of Black River – a community referred to as “ground zero” for the devastating storm – has shared the immense flooding and extensive devastation caused by the disaster.
Speaking on the harrowing experience, Richard Solomon recalled riding out the Category 5 storm at an emergency operating centre.
“The entire town of Black River is in ruins,” 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 confirmed to have died, but the mayor noted receiving word of other deaths that remain unconfirmed due to communication and transportation challenges.
“Storm Melissa arrived around eight in the morning and continued for around several hours, during which we were pounded with heavy winds and a lot of rain,” he added.
“We got up to 16ft of water at the response center. That was a bit scary for us, and we were hoping that it would not rise any further, because we were on the upper level, and frankly, when we saw the water climbing, it was a scary moment for us.”
The mayor explained that Black River, situated in the severely affected south-western region of the area, is without water and power, and the majority of buildings have had their roofs. An authority previously described the town as flooded, with over 500,000 residents lacking electricity. A landslide has obstructed the primary routes of Santa Cruz, where streets have been turned to muddy tracks. Residents are now removing water from their homes and attempting to salvage their possessions.
Rescue efforts and damage assessments have proven almost impossible because all the town’s transport and critical services such as fire, police, hospitals and grocery stores were “severely damaged,” notes the mayor.
The mayor is now concentrating on working to assist the neediest residents, while also coping with the personal impact of the disaster.
“The mayor's car was completely submerged by water. My roof went, so I fully grasp the pain that persons are experiencing, but what is a key focus for me now is to concentrate on securing aid relief for the most at-risk at this time,” he says.
The mayor believes that it will take millions of Jamaican dollars to restore the community after the hurricane's destruction. For now, he states, the priority is removing debris from blocked routes, which have cut off the town.
“Efforts are underway to clear the main roads and critical lateral roads here so that we can get relief supplies in. The majority of our supermarkets, 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 flyover of the region revealing 80 to 90% of roofs in the area had been lost.
“It is going to be a massive task to restore this historic town. But while it is destroyed, we can vision a future of it rising stronger and improved,” he informed reporters.
“We will get it done. So keep the optimism, remain hopeful, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he affirmed.
