Mayor Guiding Rebuilding Efforts at Hurricane Melissa's Worst-Hit Area
This local leader of Black River – a community referred to as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has detailed the monstrous storm surges and extensive devastation wrought by the disaster.
Speaking on the harrowing ordeal, Richard Solomon described riding out the intense hurricane at an emergency operating centre.
“The entire town of this area is in ruins,” he said. “And that devastation is so severe that the prime minister designated this area as ground zero.”
Five individuals from Black River are reported to have died, but Solomon mentioned receiving word of additional deaths that remain unconfirmed due to connectivity and travel difficulties.
“The hurricane came around 8 a.m. and continued for around nine hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and a lot of rain,” he explained.
“We experienced up to 4.8 metres of flooding at the response center. It was a bit scary for us, and we were hoping that it would not increase any further, because we were on the second floor, and frankly, when we saw the water rising, it was a scary experience for us.”
Solomon stated that Black River, located in the severely affected south-western parish of the area, is without water and power, and most buildings have lost their roofing. One official previously characterized the town as flooded, with over half a million residents without power. A mudslide has obstructed the main roads of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been turned to muddy tracks. Residents are now sweeping water from their homes and trying to salvage their possessions.
Rescue efforts and evaluations have proven almost impossible because all the town’s transport and essential facilities such as fire, police, medical centers and grocery stores were “severely damaged,” says Solomon.
He is now concentrating on trying to help the most vulnerable, while also dealing with the individual toll of the disaster.
“My vehicle was completely submerged by water. The roofing was lost, so I do understand the pain that people are feeling, but what is a key focus for me now is to focus on securing aid relief for the most at-risk at this time,” he says.
The mayor estimates that it will take billions of local currency to restore Black River after the hurricane's destruction. For now, he states, the priority is removing debris from impassable roads, which have cut off the town.
“We are now trying to get the main roads and critical lateral roads here so that we can get relief supplies in. The majority of our stores, if not all, were severely affected so they won’t be able to offer goods to persons who are in dire straits at this moment,” he says.
The prime minister has seen the damage first-hand, with an flyover of the area revealing the vast majority of buildings in the area had been lost.
“This will be a massive undertaking to restore Black River. But while it is damaged, we can vision a tomorrow of it rising more resilient and better,” he informed local media.
“We will get it done. So maintain the optimism, remain hopeful, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will rebuild better,” he said.