City Leader Leading Recovery Work at Hurricane Melissa's Worst-Hit Area
This mayor of the town of Black River – a community referred to as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has shared the immense storm surges and extensive devastation wrought by the disaster.
Reflecting on the traumatic ordeal, Richard Solomon recalled riding out the Category 5 storm at an emergency response center.
“The entire town of this area is devastated,” he stated. “And that devastation is so catastrophic that the national leader designated this area as ground zero.”
Five individuals from Black River are confirmed dead, but the mayor mentioned hearing reports of additional deaths that remain unconfirmed due to connectivity and transportation difficulties.
“The hurricane came around eight in the morning and lasted for around nine hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and a lot of rain,” he added.
“We got up to 4.8 metres of flooding at the response center. It was a bit scary for us, and we were praying that it would not rise any more, because we were on the second floor, and frankly, when we saw the water climbing, it was a terrifying experience for us.”
The mayor explained that the town, located in the severely affected southwest region of St Elizabeth, is without running water and power, and the majority of buildings have had their roofing. An authority previously described the town as flooded, with over half a million residents lacking electricity. A mudslide has obstructed the main roads of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been reduced to muddy tracks. Locals are now removing water from their houses and trying to salvage their belongings.
Search and rescue operations and evaluations have proven extremely difficult because every one of the town’s vehicles and essential facilities such as firefighting, law enforcement, hospitals and grocery stores were “immensely damaged,” notes Solomon.
The mayor is now concentrating on working to help the most vulnerable, while also coping with the personal impact of the disaster.
“My vehicle was totally covered by water. My roof was lost, so I do understand the pain that persons are feeling, but what is a priority for me now is to concentrate on getting aid relief for the most vulnerable at this point,” he says.
The mayor estimates that it will take billions of local currency to rebuild the community after Melissa’s destruction. At present, he says, the main goal is clearing impassable roads, which have isolated the town.
“We are now trying to clear the main roads and critical lateral roads here so that we can deliver aid in. The majority of our stores, if not all, were impacted negatively so they won’t be able to provide supplies to individuals who are in dire straits at this time,” he says.
National leadership has witnessed the damage personally, with an flyover of the area showing the vast majority of roofs in the area had been lost.
“This will be a enormous task to restore Black River. But while it is damaged, we can vision a tomorrow of it rising more resilient and improved,” he told local media.
“It will be accomplished. So keep the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will get through this, and we will rebuild better,” he affirmed.
