City Leader Leading Recovery Efforts at Storm Melissa's Ground Zero
The mayor of Black River – an area described as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has shared the immense storm surges and extensive destruction caused by the disaster.
Reflecting on the traumatic experience, the mayor recalled riding out the Category 5 hurricane at an emergency operating centre.
“Our community of this area is devastated,” he said. “The destruction is so severe that the prime minister classified this area as ground zero.”
Five individuals from Black River are confirmed dead, but the mayor noted hearing reports of other fatalities that are still being verified due to communication and transportation challenges.
“The hurricane came around eight in the morning and continued for around several hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and a lot of rain,” he added.
“We experienced up to 16ft of flooding at the emergency operating centre. 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 rising, it was a terrifying experience for us.”
Solomon explained that the town, located in the hard-hit southwest parish of St Elizabeth, is lacking running water and electricity, and most buildings have had their roofs. An authority earlier described the town as flooded, with over half a million inhabitants lacking electricity. A landslide has obstructed the main roads of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been turned to mud pits. Residents are now removing water from their houses and trying to rescue their possessions.
Rescue efforts and evaluations have become almost impossible because every one of the town’s vehicles and critical services such as firefighting, police, medical centers and grocery stores were “severely damaged,” says Solomon.
He is now focused on trying to help the most vulnerable, while also coping with the individual toll of the devastation.
“My vehicle was completely covered by water. My roof went, so I do understand the pain that people are experiencing, but what is a priority for me now is to concentrate on getting aid relief for the most at-risk at this time,” he explains.
Solomon believes that it will take millions of local currency to rebuild the community after Melissa’s annihilation. At present, he says, the priority is removing debris from impassable roads, which have cut off the town.
“We are now trying to get 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 will be unable to offer goods to individuals who are in dire straits at this moment,” he says.
National leadership has seen the devastation personally, with an flyover of the region revealing 80 to 90% of buildings in the area had been destroyed.
“It is going to be a enormous undertaking to restore Black River. But while it is destroyed, we can vision a tomorrow of it emerging more resilient and better,” he informed reporters.
“We will get it done. So keep the optimism, keep hope alive, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he affirmed.
