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The local leader of the town of Black River – an area referred to as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has shared the immense storm surges and extensive destruction wrought by the catastrophe.

Reflecting on the traumatic experience, Richard Solomon described enduring the Category 5 hurricane at an emergency response center.

“The entire town of Black River is devastated,” he said. “The destruction is so severe that the prime minister designated this area as ground zero.”

Several people from the town are confirmed to have died, but Solomon mentioned receiving word of additional deaths that remain unconfirmed due to connectivity and transportation challenges.

“The hurricane arrived around 8 a.m. and continued for around nine hours, during which we were pounded with heavy winds and torrential rainfall,” he explained.

“We got up to 16ft of water at the response center. It was a bit scary for us, and we were praying that it would not rise any further, because we were on the second floor, and I tell you, when we saw the water climbing, it was a terrifying experience for us.”

Solomon stated that Black River, situated in the hard-hit south-western region of St Elizabeth, is without running water and power, and most structures have had their roofs. An authority previously described the town as flooded, with over 500,000 inhabitants without power. A mudslide has obstructed the primary routes of Santa Cruz, where streets have been turned to muddy tracks. Residents are now sweeping water from their houses and attempting to salvage their belongings.

Search and rescue operations and evaluations have become extremely difficult because every one of the town’s vehicles and essential facilities such as fire, police, medical centers and supermarkets were “immensely damaged,” notes Solomon.

The mayor is now concentrating on working to assist the most vulnerable, while also dealing with the personal impact of the devastation.

“The mayor's car was totally submerged by water. My roof was lost, so I fully grasp the pain that persons are experiencing, but what is a key focus for me now is to concentrate on securing assistance for the most at-risk at this time,” he explains.

The mayor believes that it will take billions of local currency to restore the community after Melissa’s annihilation. For now, he says, the priority is clearing impassable roads, which have isolated the town.

“We are now trying to clear the major thoroughfares and secondary routes here so that we can deliver relief supplies in. Most of our supermarkets, if not all, were impacted negatively so they will be unable to offer goods to persons who are in dire straits at this moment,” he says.

National leadership has seen the damage personally, with an aerial tour of the region revealing 80 to 90% of buildings in the area had been destroyed.

“It is going to be a massive undertaking to rebuild Black River. But while it is damaged, we can vision a future of it emerging more resilient and better,” he told reporters.

“We will get it done. So maintain the positive outlook, remain hopeful, and we will overcome this challenge, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he said.