Relief efforts continue in Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa

Rescuers and aid workers fanned out across Jamaica on Saturday to distribute food and water and reach communities that have been isolated for four days. after Hurricane Melissa hit the island.

One of the strongest hurricanes in the Atlantic. Before making landfall, Melissa has been blamed for at least 19 deaths in Jamaica, 31 in nearby Haiti and at least one death in the Dominican Republic. Melissa made landfall in southwestern Jamaica on Tuesday as a Category 5 hurricane with maximum winds of 185 mph.

Health Minister Christopher Tufton acknowledged that Jamaica’s death toll was likely higher as many places are still difficult to access, but said it would be reckless to speculate.

Less than half of the island has communications and the storm destroyed almost 400 water systems.

The US military deployed three CH-47 Chinook helicopters to Jamaica on Friday for humanitarian and disaster relief duties, and five more helicopters are on the way.

According to Agence-France Presse, Jamaican officials on Saturday also announced plans to establish multiple field hospitals after several hospitals in western Jamaica were especially affected by the storm.

“That facility will be fully equipped, including an operating room and other critical diagnostic equipment, and some team members to support the local team,” Tufton said in a briefing on Saturday, according to News, adding that officials hope to have the hospital up and running next week.

There were desperate scenes in Montego Bay, as residents queued for food, water and cash. Many American tourists are still working to return home. The Gray Bull Rescue Foundation, a Florida-based nonprofit, found a way to recover 341 U.S. citizens from two hard-hit Montego Bay resorts.

Essential relief supplies are now arriving in hurricane-hit St. Elizabeth and Westmoreland, most of which had been isolated by downed concrete poles and trees scattered along roads.

But in some parts, people were forced to dip buckets into rivers, collecting the muddy water for daily use, while others drank coconut water and roasted breadfruit.

In Westmoreland, shattered sheets of metal, splintered wooden house frames and fragments of furniture littered the shoreline.

Social Security Minister Pearlel Charles Jr. was among several convoys of first responders en route to deliver ready-to-eat meals, water, tarps, blankets, medicine and other essential items.

“The priority now is getting help to those who need it,” Charles Jr. said during a brief stop on the way to Black River for the first time with long-awaited relief supplies. Prime Minister Andrew Holness had declared Black River ground zero and said the city will have to be rebuilt.

The Jamaica Defense Force has established a satellite disaster relief site at the Luana community centre, near Black River, where aid packages are being sent to residents affected by the hurricane.

Many have been without vital supplies since Tuesday and quickly gathered around a JDF truck as word spread that relief supplies were being distributed under the sweltering afternoon sun.

“Everyone is homeless right now,” Rosemarie Gayle said. “Thank you, thank you. I can’t thank you enough,” he said, as he accepted a packet of rice, beans, sardines, milk powder, cooking oil and other essential items.

Melissa has left devastation in its wakebreaking power lines and knocking down buildings, disrupting the distribution of food and water and destroying crop fields.

Satellite photographs showed the fishing village of White House, in southwestern Jamaica, and the nearby town of Black River before and after Melissa crashed into the island. Each pair captures a once-vibrant-looking city reduced to dirt and rubble.

Some people have walked miles in search of basic goods and to see their loved ones, as more than 60% of the island remained without power. Helicopters have been dropping food into isolated communities.

“People are in shock and waiting for help,” said World Vision’s national director of domestic humanitarian and emergency affairs, Mike Bassett, who traveled to the St. Elizabeth town of Santa Cruz on Friday.

“The greatest needs are drinking water, tarps to protect roofs, canned proteins, and hygiene and cleaning supplies,” he said.

On Saturday, the United Nations World Food Program received 2,000 boxes of emergency food assistance sent from Barbados, to be distributed to shelters and the most affected communities in the St. Elizabeth area.

“They will help meet the needs of 6,000 people for a week,” said WFP communications officer Alexis Masciarelli.

Tufton also warned of the risk of increased mosquitoes, waterborne diseases and food poisoning. “Please throw away spoiled food,” he said.

A US regional disaster response team was on the ground after being activated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this week, the US Embassy in Jamaica said.

“The United States supports Jamaica in its response to the impacts of the hurricane and remains prepared to rapidly deliver emergency relief items,” he said.

Jamaica’s Minister of Water and Environment, Matthew Samuda, took to social media platform X in a desperate attempt to find tarps after Melissa ripped dozens of roofs off homes in western Jamaica. The X users stepped in to help, pointing out where they had seen supplies.

Falmouth, a popular fishing spot on Jamaica’s north coast, had suffered significant damage, including flooding and collapsed buildings, Holness said Saturday.

“Our immediate priority is to restore electricity and telecommunications and ensure that essential services, particularly at Falmouth Hospital, are stabilized,” he said in X, adding that Jamaica would rebuild “stronger and wiser.”

Following the devastation, the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Fund said it would make a record payment to Jamaica of $70.8 million.

The mechanism allows countries to pool their individual risks to provide affordable coverage against natural disasters. Payment will be made within 14 days, the group said Friday.

Finance Minister Fayval Williams said Thursday that the CCRIF insurance policy was just one part of the government’s financial plan to respond to natural disasters. He noted a contingency fund, a national reserve for natural disasters and a catastrophe bond.

Government officials have said damage assessment is still ongoing.