Canadian woman stuck in Jamaica as shipped barrels remain undelivered after five months

A Canadian visitor says she has been left with no choice but to prolong her stay in Jamaica after two barrels she shipped from Canada more than five months ago still have not reached her, despite repeated promises from the company handling the consignment.

Speaking to THE STAR, the woman explained that she dispatched the barrels on November 17, 2025, and expected them to be on the island in time for her December visit. "Since the 17th of January and up till now, every day I keep calling them and they say 'Next week, next week, next week'," she said. "When is next week coming?"

The ongoing wait has thrown her travel arrangements and finances into disarray. "When I came in December, I expected to stay no longer than two months, but I am here up till now," she said, adding that she has had to rebook her flight and extend her stay twice and cannot afford to do so again.

She noted that she has shipped barrels through other companies in the past without trouble, and chose this provider for the first time after coming across it online. By her estimate, she spent upwards of CAD$2,000 — roughly J$230,000 — on the barrels and shipping. The barrels contain food and clothing. "By now those food should be, I don't know, spoiled?" she said.

Her ordeal unfolds against a backdrop of broader shipping disruptions flagged earlier in 2026, when Jamaica's ports and warehouses remained heavily congested long after the usual post-Christmas rush had eased. Industry players reported in January that goods were piling up nationwide, with incoming cargo outpacing the rate at which facilities could process it.

The Shipping Association of Jamaica cautioned that conditions had become critical, pointing out that already-cleared cargo was sitting uncollected and occupying space required for new arrivals. Part of the bottleneck was tied to fallout from Hurricane Melissa in October, which left some businesses unable to retrieve their goods because of damaged premises and financial strain. A surge in diaspora shipments and relief supplies further weighed on the system.

For diaspora members who depend on barrels to send necessities to relatives in Jamaica, the slowdowns have been especially frustrating. Mounting storage and handling charges can pile additional costs onto customers who have already paid significant sums to ship their goods.

The Canadian woman said the absence of consistent updates has been among the hardest parts of the experience, with delivery timelines moving repeatedly without a firm reason. "A couple weeks ago they said two weeks, yesterday they said next week — the same excuse all the time," she said. She also said the individual assigned to clear the barrels locally is set to leave the island.

"This is really what's stopping me from going back home. I need my barrel, I need my stuff. I'm not going to let them keep my stuff I spend too much money," she said.

Reached for comment, a representative of the shipping company said the holdup may have begun in Canada, where the consignment was reportedly not sent out within the expected window, leading customers to expect earlier arrival dates. According to the company, the container holding her items did not reach Jamaica until March, several months after it was initially shipped.

The representative also acknowledged backlogs on the Jamaican side and explained that the local arm operates as an agent receiving cargo on behalf of its overseas partner. "When the container gets to Jamaica it has to go through a process, and if they don't release the container to us, we cannot do anything to the container unless a release is done," the representative said. "Sometimes the containers will be here and we don't get the release until a month after. We can't do anything from our end because the release is something very important."