Mayor Guiding Rebuilding Work at Storm Melissa's Worst-Hit Area
The mayor of the town of Black River – a community referred to as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has detailed the monstrous flooding and extensive devastation wrought by the disaster.
Reflecting on the harrowing experience, Richard Solomon described riding out the Category 5 storm at an emergency operating centre.
“The entire town of this area is devastated,” he stated. “And that devastation is so catastrophic that the prime minister designated this area as ground zero.”
Several people from the town are reported dead, but the mayor noted receiving word of other fatalities that remain unconfirmed due to connectivity and travel difficulties.
“The hurricane arrived around eight in the morning and lasted for around nine hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and torrential rainfall,” he added.
“We got up to 4.8 metres of water at the emergency operating centre. It was a frightening moment for us, and we were praying that it would not rise any further, because we were on the second floor, and frankly, when we saw the water climbing, it was a scary moment for us.”
Solomon explained that Black River, located in the severely affected southwest parish of St Elizabeth, is lacking water and electricity, and the majority of structures have lost their roofing. One official previously characterized the town as flooded, with over half a million residents lacking electricity. A landslide has blocked the primary routes of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been reduced to mud pits. Residents are now sweeping water from their homes and trying to rescue their belongings.
Rescue efforts and evaluations have proven almost impossible because every one of the town’s transport and essential facilities such as fire, law enforcement, hospitals and grocery stores were “immensely damaged,” says the mayor.
The mayor is now concentrating on trying to assist the most vulnerable, while also coping with the personal impact of the devastation.
“My vehicle was totally submerged by water. The roofing went, so I fully grasp the suffering that people are experiencing, but what is a priority for me now is to focus on getting aid relief for the most at-risk at this time,” he says.
The mayor estimates that it will take billions of local currency to restore Black River after Melissa’s annihilation. For now, he says, the main goal is clearing impassable roads, which have isolated the town.
“Efforts are underway to clear the main roads and secondary routes here so that we can deliver aid in. Most of our supermarkets, if not all, were severely affected so they will be unable to provide supplies to individuals who are in need at this time,” he adds.
National leadership has seen the devastation first-hand, with an aerial tour of the region revealing 80 to 90% of roofs in the area had been destroyed.
“This will be a massive task to rebuild Black River. But while it is damaged, we can vision a tomorrow of it emerging stronger and better,” he told local media.
“We will get it done. So maintain the optimism, remain hopeful, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he said.
