Mayor Leading Recovery Efforts at Storm Melissa's Worst-Hit Area
The mayor of Black River – a community referred to as “the epicenter” for Hurricane Melissa – has shared the immense storm surges and widespread destruction wrought by the catastrophe.
Reflecting on the traumatic ordeal, Richard Solomon recalled riding out the intense hurricane at an emergency response center.
“Our community of this area is devastated,” he stated. “The destruction is so catastrophic that the national leader designated this area as ground zero.”
Five individuals from the town are reported dead, but the mayor mentioned hearing reports of additional deaths that are still being verified due to connectivity and travel challenges.
“Storm Melissa came around 8 a.m. and continued for around nine hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and a lot of rain,” he added.
“We got up to 16ft of flooding at the emergency operating centre. It was a frightening moment for us, and we were praying that it would not rise any more, because we were on the upper level, and frankly, when we saw the water climbing, it was a scary moment for us.”
Solomon explained that the town, situated in the hard-hit south-western region of St Elizabeth, is lacking water and electricity, and the majority of buildings have had their roofing. An authority earlier described the town as flooded, with over half a million inhabitants without power. A mudslide has obstructed the main roads of a nearby area, where streets have been turned to mud pits. Residents are now sweeping water from their houses and attempting to salvage their belongings.
Rescue efforts and evaluations have proven almost impossible because every one of the town’s transport and critical services such as firefighting, police, medical centers and grocery stores were “immensely damaged,” says the mayor.
The mayor is now concentrating on trying to assist the most vulnerable, while also dealing with the personal impact of the devastation.
“The mayor's car was completely covered by water. My roof went, so I do understand the suffering that persons are experiencing, but what is a key focus for me now is to focus on getting aid relief for the most at-risk at this point,” he explains.
The mayor believes that it will take billions of local currency to rebuild Black River after Melissa’s annihilation. At present, he states, the main goal is removing debris from impassable roads, which have isolated the town.
“Efforts are underway to get the main roads and secondary routes here so that we can deliver relief supplies in. The majority of our stores, if not all, were impacted negatively so they will be unable to provide supplies to persons who are in dire straits at this time,” he says.
National leadership has seen the damage personally, with an aerial tour of the area revealing 80 to 90% of roofs in the area had been lost.
“This will be a enormous task to restore this historic town. But although it is damaged, we can vision a future of it rising more resilient and better,” he told local media.
“We will get it done. So keep the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will get through this, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he affirmed.
