Mayor Leading Rebuilding Efforts at Storm Melissa's Worst-Hit Area
This local leader of the town of Black River – a community referred to as “the epicenter” for the devastating storm – has shared the immense storm surges and widespread devastation wrought by the catastrophe.
Reflecting on the harrowing ordeal, Richard Solomon described enduring the intense hurricane at an emergency operating centre.
“Our community of this area is in ruins,” he said. “The destruction is so severe that the prime minister classified this area as the worst-hit zone.”
Five individuals from the town are confirmed to have died, but the mayor noted receiving word of other deaths that remain unconfirmed due to connectivity and transportation difficulties.
“Storm Melissa 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 experienced up to 4.8 metres of water at the response center. It was a bit scary for us, and we were praying that it would not increase any further, because we were on the upper level, and I tell you, when we saw the water rising, it was a scary moment for us.”
Solomon stated that the town, situated in the hard-hit southwest parish of St Elizabeth, is lacking running water and electricity, and most buildings have lost their roofs. An authority previously characterized the town as under water, with over half a million residents without power. A mudslide has blocked the main roads of Santa Cruz, where streets have been reduced to mud pits. Locals are now removing water from their homes and trying to rescue their possessions.
Search and rescue operations and damage assessments have proven almost impossible because all the town’s transport and essential facilities such as firefighting, police, hospitals and grocery stores were “severely damaged,” says the mayor.
He is now focused on working to help the neediest residents, while also coping with the individual toll of the devastation.
“The mayor's car was totally covered by water. My roof went, so I do understand the pain that people are experiencing, but what is a key focus for me now is to focus on securing aid relief for the most at-risk at this point,” he explains.
The mayor estimates that it will take millions 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 clear the main roads and secondary routes here so that we can deliver aid in. Most of our stores, if not all, were impacted negatively so they will be unable to offer goods to individuals who are in dire straits at this time,” he adds.
National leadership has witnessed the damage personally, with an aerial tour of the area revealing the vast majority of buildings in the area had been lost.
“This will be a massive undertaking to restore Black River. But although it is damaged, we can envision a tomorrow of it rising stronger and better,” he informed reporters.
“We will get it done. So maintain the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will get through this, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he said.
