Death toll rises as aid struggles to reach parts of Jamaica
Information Minister Dana Morris Dixon said that at least 19 people died as a result of Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica, search and rescue efforts continue and authorities are trying to deliver aid to hard-hit areas.
The strongest hurricane to hit the Caribbean also killed at least 30 people in Haiti, officials said.
In Jamaica, “there are communities that appear to be zoned and areas that appear to be flattened,” Dixon said, adding that there were “devastating” landscapes in the western regions.
Power remains out across much of the island, and thousands are increasingly desperate for help as people struggle to rescue damaged homes and belongings from floodwaters and mud.
Some parts of the country have been without water for several days and food is increasingly scarce.
Relief supplies are starting to arrive faster, with the main airport in Jamaica’s capital, Kingston, largely back to normal.
But smaller regional airports, some located near where humanitarian aid is needed most, remain only partially operational.
So aid agencies and the military are bringing urgently needed supplies by road from Kingston, much of which is impassable in some places.
Satellite images show that nearly all buildings in some Jamaican villages were destroyed by the hurricane.
Residents of towns in western Jamaica told the BBC on Thursday that “words cannot describe” how devastating the storm was in the country.
“Nobody can reach their loved ones,” Trevor ‘Zyanigh’ Whyte, from the town of White House in Westmoreland, told the BBC.
“Everyone is, you know, completely disconnected… Every tree is on the road, so you can’t get very far in cars, even on bikes,” he said.
Most of those killed in the storm in Haiti died when a river in Petit-Goave overflowed. A full assessment is ongoing as there are areas still inaccessible to authorities.
Gregoire Goodstein, the interim UN coordinator in Haiti, said about 15,000 people are staying in more than 120 shelters in Haiti.
According to Francisco Pichon, the UN resident coordinator in Cuba, more than 3 million people were “exposed to life-threatening conditions” during the hurricane in Cuba and 735,000 people were “safely evacuated”.
Cuban officials said that no deaths have been reported in Cuba so far, but communication has been cut off in almost 240 communities due to floods and landslides.
Hurricane Melissa arrived in Jamaica on Tuesday as a category five storm, packing winds of up to 185 mph (295 km/h) before impacting other countries in the Caribbean.
Governments, humanitarian organizations and individuals around the world are pledging support to countries hardest hit by the storm.
The World Food Program said it is collaborating with partners to coordinate logistics, cash and emergency supplies across Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
The U.S. State Department said it would send a disaster response team to the area to assist with search and rescue operations and efforts to provide food, water, medical supplies, hygiene kits and temporary shelter.
The UK government said it would send £2.5 million ($3.36 million) in emergency humanitarian funding to support recovery in the Caribbean.
Bermuda prepared for impact while Jamaica, Cuba, and Haiti assessed the remaining damage in Melissa’s wake.
The Bermuda Weather Service expected Melissa to be a category two hurricane when it crossed the British overseas territory on Thursday night.
Government offices in Bermuda will close until Friday afternoon and all schools will close on Friday.
“Until the official ‘All Clear’ is declared, residents are asked to stay off the roads so Government work crews can safely assess and clear debris,” a public warning from the government said. The statement was included.
