Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, has informed that the preliminary estimate for the damage caused by the heavy rains from Potential Tropical Cyclone 22 is close to $409 million. He made the disclosure in a statement to the House of Representatives on Tuesday (November 21). Between November 16 and 18, Jamaica experienced flood rains that impacted several communities. These include areas in Kingston, St. Andrew, St. Catherine, St. Thomas, Portland, and St. Mary. “Our assessment is that 69 roads were badly affected by landslides, mud flows, downed trees, or inundation, which rendered some communities inaccessible and some marooned,” Mr. Holness said. The Prime Minister stated that throughout this year, Jamaica witnessed the staggering aftermath of storms on a global scale, affecting the United States, Europe, Africa, and Dubai, a country renowned for its arid climate. “Closer to home we have seen significant flooding and storm surges in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, [and] Haiti. In fact, this storm system which passed us, affected those three countries and did major damage in the Dominican Republic. So, we give a collective sigh of relief that we were not affected that badly, and we give God thanks that we were spared the worse,” Mr. Holness said. He noted that recently built infrastructure, such as roads and highways, stood up to the test of the potential tropical cyclone. “However, our legacy infrastructure demonstrates that they do not have the carrying capacity to manage the volume of water that these weather events bring to Jamaica,” Mr. Holness said. “We have seen significant flooding of roadways; we have seen houses flooded. But within a matter of hours the flooding would have dissipated; and that is primarily because the size of the drains that we have are too small, and the other issue… is the level of garbage/refuse or waste that is coming down our gullies, blocking the culverts and contributing to the flooding,” he added. Mr. Holness also noted the need for river training in St. Thomas, pointing out that the rivers there are not well defined in terms of their boundaries/embankments. “We have identified that we will probably have to spend approximately $700 million in river training in the parish and, having toured, we see the necessity of it,” the Prime Minister stated.
Last Updated: November 22, 2023
