Relief efforts in Jamaica continue after Hurricane Melissa

Rescuers and aid workers spread across Jamaica on Saturday to distribute food and water and reach communities still isolated for four days after Hurricane Melissa hit the island.

One of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes To make 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 top winds of 190 miles per hour.

Health Minister Christopher Tufton acknowledged that Jamaica’s death toll was likely higher because many places remain difficult to access, but said it would be unwise to speculate.

Less than half of the island has communications links and nearly 400 water systems were knocked out by the storm.

The US Army deployed three CH-47 Chinook helicopters to Jamaica Friday for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, while another five helicopters are on their way.

According to Agence-France Presse, Jamaican officials also announced plans on Saturday to set up several field hospitals, after several hospitals in western Jamaica were particularly hard hit 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 AFP, adding that officials expect the hospital to be operational in the coming week.

There were desperate scenes in Montego Bay as residents queued to get food, water and cash. Many American tourists are still trying to find their way home. Florida-based nonprofit Gray Bull Rescue Foundation has found a way to get 341 U.S. citizens back from two particularly hard-hit Montego Bay resorts.

Vital relief supplies are now flowing into hurricane-ravaged St. Elizabeth and Westmoreland, much of which was cut off by fallen concrete poles and trees scattered across the roads.

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

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

Social Security Minister Pearnel Charles Jr. was among the convoys of aid workers on the road delivering ready-made meals, water, tarps, blankets, medicine and other supplies.

“The priority now is to get 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 set up a satellite response site at the Luana Community Center near Black River, where care packages are being sent to residents affected by the hurricane.

Left without essential supplies since Tuesday, many quickly gathered around a JDF truck as word spread that relief supplies were being distributed in the sweltering midday sun.

“Everyone is homeless right now,” Rosemarie Gayle said. ‘Thank you, thank you. I can’t thank you enough,” she said, accepting a package of rice, beans, sardines, powdered milk, cooking oil and other necessities.

Melissa has left devastation in its wakesnapping power lines and toppling buildings, disrupting food and water distribution and destroying fields.

Satellite photos showed the southwestern Jamaican fishing village of White House 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 walked for miles in search of basic goods and to check on their loved ones as more than 60% of the island was without power. Helicopters drop food in remote communities.

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

“The biggest needs are clean water, tarp for roof damage, canned proteins, hygiene and cleaning supplies,” he said.

On Saturday, the United Nations World Food Program received 2,000 boxes of emergency food aid, shipped 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 an increase in mosquitoes, water-borne diseases and food poisoning. “Throw away spoiled food,” he said.

A U.S. regional disaster relief team was on the scene after being activated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this week, the U.S. Embassy in Jamaica said.

“The United States stands with Jamaica as it responds to the impacts of the hurricane and remains prepared to quickly deliver emergency relief supplies,” the report said.

Jamaican Minister of Water and Environment Matthew Samuda went to the social media platform X in a desperate attempt to find tarpaulin after Melissa ripped off dozens of roofs from homes in western Jamaica. X users came to help and indicated where they had seen supplies.

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

“Our immediate priority is to restore the electricity and telecommunications sectors and ensure that essential services, especially at Falmouth Hospital, are stabilised,” he said on X, adding that Jamaica would rebuild “stronger and wiser”.

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

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

Finance Minister Fayval Williams said on Thursday that the CCRIF insurance policy was just part of the government’s financial plan to respond to natural disasters. She pointed to an emergency fund, a national natural disaster reserve and disaster insurance.

Government officials have said the damage assessment is still ongoing.