Jamaicans take shelter as Hurricane Melissa bears down as category 5 storm | Jamaica

Jamaicans are sheltering from Hurricane Melissa as high winds toppled trees and caused power outages before the Category 5 storm made landfall on Tuesday.

The slow-moving giant, the strongest hurricane to hit Jamaica since records began in 1851, is increasing in intensity and is predicted to continue over the island. Authorities fear this will lead to major flooding, landslides and extensive infrastructure damage.

Winds are already becoming gusty in the southwestern area of ​​St Elizabeth; A tree falls on a power pole and cuts off the electricity.

The community also bore the brunt of last year’s Hurricane Beryl, which caused historic levels of destruction in St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada and Jamaica. Some people say they have just completed work on their properties after Beryl.

Evan Thompson, director of the Jamaica Meteorological Service, warned that no part of the island was likely to escape Melissa’s deadly combination of rapid intensification and snail-paced advance.

“If it continues as predicted in terms of rotation towards the island, we should expect hurricane-force winds to begin impacting southern coastal areas on Tuesday and then gradually spread as the system approaches the coastline,” he said.

He said the rapid strengthening of the hurricane was remarkable: “This is something that doesn’t happen all the time, and it’s generally indicative of the warmer waters we’re experiencing, which we believe is somehow linked to climate change.”

Desrick Kenton, who lives in Portland on the northeast coast, said the rattling of his zinc roof convinced him to go to a shelter. When asked why he thought some people refused to move, he said: “God’s spirit needs to touch some people before they move. But I tell them that even if you have a concrete structure, it doesn’t matter; if you live in a low-lying area, pull yourself together and get to the best shelter.”

Leslie Burton, a farmer living in Portland, was also left without power. “I have to throw away some small items in my refrigerator, and my neighbors have the same problem,” he said, adding that he was worried about his animals.

“I tried to put some zinc [coverings] “It passed over them, but the wind blew them away,” he said. He said he had to find a way to protect them because they are a source of income. “I’m even making all the preparations for my house, but now I just have to hope for the best,” he said.

Maria Douglas, a shop owner in Portland, is also without electricity. “My ice cream is melting. I need to give them out as well as the drinks. The meats are still frozen but I’m not sure how long they will last, so it will be a big loss. We didn’t expect the power to go out so soon, otherwise we could have been better organised.”

Author and broadcaster Ava Brown, owner of the Black River film festival, said St. Louis, which is expected to be one of the worst-hit areas of the epidemic. It is located in Elizabeth. He said that he was afraid even though he took every precaution. “I’m a single mother, so I asked one of my neighbors to help me close my windows. We had to move some items away from the house,” she said. “I’m really scared. It’s scary because you worry about how you’re going to divide up the food, for example.”

Jason Henzell, president of the Jakes hotel in Treasure Beach, a popular tourist destination, said he decided to leave his home in St Elizabeth and move his family to Kingston when he saw the effects of the storm.

Despite efforts to “lead by example” and encourage other residents to leave the area and seek shelter elsewhere, some chose to stay, Henzell said.

“Jamaicans are very deep in their faith. And I don’t mean that to be sarcastic. I say that with tremendous sincerity and respect. So, as a people, we tend to think that we can pray for things. And for the most part, we’re forgiven. So there’s a sense that God is going to protect us.” [the hurricane] in a different direction. And this faith and belief has saved us in many situations. But you know… at some point the luck will run out, the abundance will run out. And I just hope and pray that today isn’t that day, but it looks like it is.”

Category 5 is the highest category on the Saffir-Simpson scale, with sustained winds exceeding 250 km/h (157mph). Jonathan Porter, AccuWeather’s chief meteorologist, said Melissa will be the strongest hurricane to directly hit Jamaica in recorded history.

It said critical infrastructure, including the island’s main international airport and power plants, was located off the coast of Kingston, where storm surges of up to 4 meters (13 ft) were expected.

“This could very quickly turn into a real humanitarian crisis and a lot of international support will probably be needed,” he said.

One of the main concerns of Jamaican authorities is to accommodate people in low-lying and flood-prone areas on the coast and elsewhere in about 900 shelters.

The country’s prime minister, Andrew Holness, announced late Sunday that he had signed a mandatory evacuation order for many communities on the south coast, which will strengthen the country’s development. Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management Moving people away from high-risk areas after some refused to leave.

Residents of Port Royal, a small fishing village in Kingston, said they didn’t want to move over the weekend because they wouldn’t feel safe in shelters where their belongings could be stolen and women could be at risk.

Before most of Port Royal was flooded in the 1692 earthquake, it was one of the largest cities in the Caribbean. Today, it is considered one of the most vulnerable communities to hurricanes and is on the mandatory evacuation list.

Jamaican Health Minister Christopher Tufton said people who refused to move risked putting further pressure on already weak health services.

“The concerns are more about people not being evacuated,” he said. “But overall there are some vulnerabilities in some of our institutions. We have about three hospitals that are close to the coast – Falmouth, Black River and Hanover. They’re right on the coastline, on the coastline. So if a surge is high enough they could see some flooding.” He said there are plans to evacuate patients to higher ground if necessary.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Monday morning local time that Melissa was about 135 miles (220 km) southwest of Kingston and about 320 miles southwest of Guantanamo, Cuba. The maximum sustained wind speed was 160 mph, moving west at 3 mph, the agency said.

It was stated that some parts of eastern Jamaica could receive up to one meter (40 inches) of rain, while western Haiti could receive 40 cm (16 inches) of rain. “Catastrophic flash flooding and multiple landslides are likely.”