🔗 Share this article

The local leader of the town of Black River – an area described as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has shared the immense flooding and extensive devastation wrought by the disaster.

Speaking on the traumatic ordeal, the mayor recalled riding out the intense hurricane at an emergency response center.

“The entire town of this area is devastated,” he said. “The destruction is so severe that the prime minister classified this area as the worst-hit zone.”

Several people from Black River are confirmed to have died, but Solomon noted receiving word of additional deaths that are still being verified due to communication and travel difficulties.

“The hurricane arrived around 8 a.m. and continued for around nine hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and torrential rainfall,” he explained.

“We experienced up to 16ft of flooding at the response center. It was a frightening moment for us, and we were praying that it would not increase any further, because we were on the second floor, and I tell you, when we saw the water rising, it was a scary moment for us.”

Solomon stated that Black River, located in the severely affected southwest parish of St Elizabeth, is lacking water and electricity, and the majority of buildings have lost their roofs. One official previously described the town as flooded, with more than half a million inhabitants lacking electricity. A mudslide has blocked the primary routes of Santa Cruz, where streets have been turned to mud pits. Residents are now removing water from their homes and trying to rescue 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 firefighting, police, medical centers and grocery stores were “severely damaged,” says the mayor.

He is now concentrating on working to assist the neediest residents, while also dealing with the individual toll of the devastation.

“The mayor's car was completely 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 assistance for the most vulnerable at this point,” he explains.

Solomon believes that it will take billions of Jamaican dollars to restore Black River after Melissa’s destruction. At present, he says, 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 get aid in. The majority of our stores, if not all, were severely affected so they won’t be able to provide supplies to individuals who are in need at this moment,” he adds.

The prime minister has seen the damage personally, with an flyover of the region revealing the vast majority of roofs in the area had been destroyed.

“It is going to be a massive task to rebuild Black River. But while it is destroyed, we can envision a tomorrow of it rising stronger and better,” he told local media.

“We will get it done. So keep the optimism, remain hopeful, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will rebuild better,” he affirmed.