Mayor Leading Recovery Efforts at Hurricane Melissa's Ground Zero
The local leader of Black River – a community described as “ground zero” for the devastating storm – has detailed the monstrous storm surges and extensive devastation wrought by the catastrophe.
Reflecting on the harrowing ordeal, Richard Solomon described riding out the Category 5 storm at an emergency operating centre.
“Our community of Black River is in ruins,” he said. “And that devastation is so catastrophic that the prime minister designated this area as the worst-hit zone.”
Five individuals from the town are reported to have died, but the mayor noted hearing reports of additional deaths that are still being verified due to connectivity and travel challenges.
“Storm Melissa arrived around eight in the morning and continued for around nine hours, during which we were pounded with heavy winds 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 hoping that it would not increase any further, because we were on the second floor, and frankly, when we saw the water rising, it was a scary moment for us.”
The mayor stated that the town, located in the hard-hit southwest region of the area, is lacking running water and power, and the majority of buildings have had their roofs. One official earlier described the town as flooded, with more than 500,000 residents without power. A landslide has obstructed the main roads of a nearby area, where roadways have been reduced to muddy tracks. Residents are now removing water from their houses and trying to salvage their belongings.
Search and rescue operations and damage assessments have proven extremely difficult because every one of the town’s transport and essential facilities such as fire, police, medical centers and grocery stores were “severely damaged,” says Solomon.
The mayor is now concentrating on working to assist the most vulnerable, while also coping with the personal impact of the disaster.
“The mayor's car was totally submerged by water. My roof went, so I fully grasp the suffering that persons are experiencing, but what is a priority for me now is to focus on securing assistance for the most vulnerable at this time,” he explains.
The mayor estimates that it will take billions of Jamaican dollars to rebuild Black River after Melissa’s annihilation. For now, he states, the priority is clearing impassable roads, which have cut off the town.
“We are now trying to clear the major thoroughfares and secondary routes here so that we can get relief supplies 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 time,” he says.
National leadership has seen the damage personally, with an aerial tour of the area revealing the vast majority of buildings in the area had been destroyed.
“This will be a massive task to rebuild this historic town. But although it is destroyed, we can envision a future of it emerging stronger and better,” he told local media.
“It will be accomplished. So keep the positive outlook, remain hopeful, and we will get through this, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he said.
