ODPEM repairs 507 Hurricane Melissa roofs as agency plans 24-hour operations unit

The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) says more than 507 roofs damaged by Hurricane Melissa have been repaired under the shelter recovery programme, using about $200 million in donated funds and building materials and sundries valued at roughly $400 million.

Director General Commander Alvin Gale gave the update in a Jamaica Information Service interview on Wednesday, July 22, 2026. He said a further highlight was coordinating 126 local and international agencies that provided early relief, with staff running near round-the-clock operations for more than two and a half months to keep a whole-of-government response in place.

Responding to the Auditor General’s findings, Commander Gale said ODPEM has accepted the gaps identified and is closing them, using the reports to strengthen future work under strain. Board chair Trudy Deans said long-standing organisational weaknesses flagged after Hurricane Beryl and again by the Auditor General are being addressed, with investigations into serious matters nearing completion and action to follow due process where warranted. Jamaica Defence Force personnel are helping with logistics and inventory, and the World Food Programme recently ran a workshop with ODPEM staff.

Commander Gale said Cabinet approved a new National Disaster Fund committee in May after ODPEM wrote the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service in January; the earlier committee had expired in September 2023. Outstanding statements of accounts and annual reports remain a work in progress, while steps are under way with the ministry and the Accountant General to resolve how fund monies were held alongside another project account.

ODPEM is also proposing a dedicated 24-hour operations division so the agency can track day-to-day hazards—such as highway oil spills and localised flooding—without activating the National Emergency Operations Centre only for major events. Deans said the board is reviewing staffing to add more technical capacity and may bring in a consultant on reorganisation, including closer work with the Jamaica Fire Brigade, the JDF and the police.

Separately, Permanent Secretary Sansia Bennett-Templar of the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce told the national MSME conference hosted by the Small Business Association of Jamaica that micro, small and medium enterprises make up about 90 per cent of local firms and contribute some $1.3 trillion a year. She said more than 75 business development services help firms move from informal to investor-ready status, but businesses must formalise and become tax compliant to access financing and the government’s 20 per cent MSME procurement set-aside.

The Insports Challenge Cup is back after a six-year pause linked to COVID-19, with 12 secondary-school football and 12 netball teams competing. Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Minister Olivia Grange said the tournament builds character, teamwork and resilience, and announced equal prize money for both sports: $400,000 for winners, $250,000 for second, $150,000 for third, and $20,000 for other participating teams.

Principals Heidi K. Holmes of Creative Kids Learning Academy in St. Andrew and Carlen Williams-Heath of Park Mountain Primary in St. Elizabeth, both with students among the national top 10 in the 2026 Primary Exit Profile exams, praised PEP as strong preparation for secondary school.

Energy, Transport and Telecommunications Minister Daryl Vaz also announced that Lieutenant Colonel Sheldon Bryan, seconded from the Jamaica Defence Force, will become Island Traffic Authority director general on September 1, succeeding Colonel Daniel Price, who resigned effective June 30. Bryan’s early brief includes the demerit point system, ITA modernisation, and restoring the Black River examination depot within 30 to 45 days.