On Oct. 28, Jamaica was struck by a Category 5 extratropical cyclone. It formed from a tropical wave that originated off West Africa. The system traveled across the central Atlantic westward to the Caribbean, hitting Cuba and the Bahamas and passing near Bermuda. The hurricane has affected the Windward Islands, Greater Antilles, Colombia, the Lucayan Archipelago and Bermuda.
“The week that Hurricane Melissa happened, we couldn’t contact anybody,” said an Encinal student who has family in Jamaica. “When we contacted them, they had lost their house and the whole neighborhood was destroyed. There was nowhere to go. No hospitals, no churches, no anything.” According to the student, their relatives in Jamaica didn’t receive warning in time to adequately prepare for the catastrophe.
With torrential rain and destructive winds reaching up to 185 mph, Hurricane Melissa has become the worst hurricane to ever hit Jamaica, the strongest tropical cyclone of the year and the third most intense hurricane in Atlantic history.
So far in the Caribbean, there have been 96 reported fatalities, 141 injuries, 29 missing people and nearly 6 million people impacted as a result of Hurricane Melissa. These numbers continue to rise as more people are located in hard-to-access areas.
When the student was asked whether their family has access to food and supplies after the hurricane, they said, “No. They don’t. We’re gonna send barrels [with food and water] down there.”
But it’s more than one Encinal student’s family who is struggling to access basic resources — about 360,000 people affected by the hurricane in Jamaica may require food assistance.
According to CBS News, “In certain areas, people are forced to dip buckets into rivers, collecting the muddy water for everyday use, while others have been drinking coconut water and roasting breadfruit.”
Hurricane Melissa has caused three-quarters of Jamaica to lose electricity. It knocked out nearly 400 water systems, damaged tourism roads and devastated agricultural regions. There is an estimated $6 billion to $7 billion in infrastructure damage in Jamaica.
In the hardest-hit areas, such as the Black River region and the parishes of St. Elizabeth, up to 90% of homes have been destroyed or severely damaged. Roughly 20% of Jamaica’s homes are uninsured, worsening the economic impact and leaving many residents to cover the full cost of repairs without financial assistance.
The Guardian, estimates damages across the Caribbean are $48 billion to $52 billion.
Currently, rescuers and aid workers are deployed across Jamaica distributing food, water and humanitarian aid.
In response, Oakland’s Minto’s Jamaican Restaurant launched a donation drive for hurricane relief.
There will also be a Jamaica Hurricane Relief concert held in San Francisco on Nov. 28.
