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The mayor of the town of Black River – a community referred to as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has detailed the monstrous storm surges and extensive devastation caused by the catastrophe.

Reflecting on the traumatic experience, Richard Solomon recalled enduring the intense hurricane at an emergency operating centre.

“Our community of Black River is in ruins,” he said. “And that devastation is so catastrophic that the national leader classified this area as the worst-hit zone.”

Five individuals from Black River are confirmed to have died, but the mayor mentioned hearing reports of additional deaths that remain unconfirmed due to communication and transportation difficulties.

“The hurricane came around 8 a.m. and lasted for around several hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and torrential rainfall,” he explained.

“We got up to 4.8 metres of flooding at the emergency operating centre. That was a frightening moment for us, and we were hoping that it would not increase any further, because we were on the second floor, and I tell you, when we saw the water climbing, it was a terrifying moment for us.”

Solomon explained that Black River, situated in the severely affected south-western parish of St Elizabeth, is lacking running water and electricity, and most buildings have had their roofs. An authority earlier characterized the town as under water, with over 500,000 inhabitants lacking electricity. A landslide has obstructed the primary routes of a nearby area, where roadways have been turned to muddy tracks. Locals are now sweeping water from their homes and attempting to rescue their belongings.

Search and rescue operations and damage assessments have become extremely difficult because all the town’s vehicles and critical services such as firefighting, law enforcement, medical centers and supermarkets were “severely damaged,” says the mayor.

The mayor is now focused on working to help the most vulnerable, while also coping with the personal impact of the disaster.

“My vehicle was totally submerged by water. My roof was lost, so I do understand the suffering that persons are experiencing, but what is a priority for me now is to focus on getting assistance for the most at-risk at this point,” he says.

Solomon believes that it will take billions of Jamaican dollars to rebuild the community after the hurricane's destruction. For now, he says, the main goal is removing debris from blocked routes, which have isolated the town.

“We are now trying to get the main roads and critical lateral roads here so that we can get aid in. The majority of our supermarkets, if not all, were impacted negatively so they will be unable to offer goods to persons who are in need at this time,” he says.

The prime minister has seen the devastation first-hand, with an aerial tour of the region showing 80 to 90% of buildings in the area had been destroyed.

“This will be a enormous task to rebuild this historic town. But although it is destroyed, we can vision a tomorrow of it emerging more resilient and improved,” he told local media.

“We will get it done. So keep the optimism, remain hopeful, and we will get through this, and we will rebuild better,” he affirmed.