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This mayor of Black River – a community referred to as “the epicenter” for Hurricane Melissa – has detailed the monstrous flooding and widespread destruction wrought by the disaster.

Reflecting on the traumatic ordeal, Richard Solomon described enduring the Category 5 storm at an emergency operating centre.

“The entire town of Black River is devastated,” he stated. “The destruction is so catastrophic that the national leader designated this area as ground zero.”

Five individuals from the town are reported to have died, but Solomon noted hearing reports of other fatalities that remain unconfirmed due to connectivity and transportation challenges.

“The hurricane arrived around eight in the morning and continued for around nine hours, during which we were battered with heavy winds and torrential rainfall,” he explained.

“We experienced up to 4.8 metres of flooding at the emergency operating centre. 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, situated in the severely affected southwest parish of the area, is lacking water and power, and most structures have lost their roofing. An authority previously characterized the town as under water, with more than 500,000 inhabitants without power. A landslide has obstructed the primary routes of Santa Cruz, where roadways have been turned to muddy tracks. Residents are now removing water from their houses and attempting to salvage their possessions.

Search and rescue operations and evaluations have become almost impossible because every one of the town’s transport and critical services such as fire, law enforcement, hospitals and supermarkets were “severely damaged,” notes Solomon.

He is now focused on working to help the neediest residents, 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 suffering that people are experiencing, but what is a key focus for me now is to concentrate on getting assistance for the most vulnerable at this time,” he says.

Solomon believes that it will take millions of Jamaican dollars to rebuild Black River after Melissa’s destruction. For now, he says, the main goal is removing debris from blocked routes, which have cut off the town.

“We are now trying to get the major thoroughfares and secondary routes here so that we can deliver aid in. Most of our supermarkets, if not all, were impacted negatively so they won’t be able to provide supplies to individuals who are in dire straits at this moment,” he says.

The prime minister has witnessed the damage personally, with an aerial tour of the region showing 80 to 90% of roofs in the area had been lost.

“This will be a enormous undertaking to rebuild Black River. But while it is destroyed, we can envision a future of it emerging stronger and improved,” he informed reporters.

“It will be accomplished. So keep the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will rebuild better,” he affirmed.