St Elizabeth hurricane shelters still crippled as mayor warns parish faces storm season shortfall

WESTERN BUREAU: Black River Mayor Richard Solomon has warned that St Elizabeth is still far from ready for the Atlantic hurricane season, which opens in about two weeks, with well over half of the parish’s emergency shelters still unfit for use following last year’s Hurricane Melissa.

Addressing Thursday’s regular meeting of the St Elizabeth Municipal Corporation (StEMC), Solomon said teams have already finished checks on more than 80 per cent of shelters across the parish. Many of the sites are schools and community centres that took heavy blows during the storm.

“More than 50 per cent of our shelters that we would have assessed already are not in a position to accommodate sheltering if we were to be hit by a hurricane,” said Solomon.

“Over 60 per cent of what was assessed is in no condition to facilitate any shelterees,” he added, cautioning that even a modest weather system could stretch the parish beyond its limits.

“Now ask yourself the question, if we get a little tropical storm now, what will be our position?”

His warning lands as public anger builds over a real-time audit by the Auditor General’s Department, published Tuesday, which found that four months after the Category 5 hurricane, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) had used only $26 million — about 1.8 per cent of the $1.44 billion in cash donations meant to help Jamaicans hit by the storm. The numbers had not moved by April.

Solomon said the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development, the StEMC, and other disaster bodies all know how serious the gap is. He acknowledged that authorities are still racing to line up other places where people could go, including churches.

“We are not at a good place, but nonetheless, we are still looking. We are still seeking alternative shelters,” he told councillors and parish officials at the session.

He pointed out that the Government has backed churches with clean-up and repair work, given the part they may have to play when danger strikes.

“We might have to look to some of our churches this time around in terms of accommodating some of our shelterees,” the mayor said, while thanking faith groups for working with the corporation.

The strain has also pushed the StEMC to hunt for a fresh disaster command post away from Black River, after emergency crews were cut off in the town during Hurricane Melissa.

“We are actively looking for a command centre that we can function from in the event of another hurricane. Black River will not be our command centre. We are actively exploring different sites because we are looking for the most suitable place,” he said. “What we don’t want this time around is to be rescued and not be responding. That is exactly what happened during Melissa. We could not respond. We were marooned; we were trapped.”

Calling the picture grim, Solomon said the unknowns have been weighing on him personally.

“It’s not an easy task where we are at this point in time, and it is really a cause for concern. It is giving me sleepless nights. While some of us can run to a decked place, what about those who still haven’t put on their roof yet?” he asked.

He also disclosed that several volunteer shelter managers who stepped up in past emergencies are now hesitant to serve again.

“What I am hearing now, some of them are not willing to continue to act in that position because they would have to be leaving their personal space to come and manage a shelter, and they, too, are impacted,” he explained.

In a direct appeal, Solomon called on community leaders and residents to help find and train new shelter managers before the season starts.

“So, I am appealing, I am begging, that we start to identify and promote shelter managers. We are going to need shelter managers in the community centres, we are going to need them in the schools,” he said. “It is very, very important. It is cause for concern, and I am hoping for the best.”