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As the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season officially kicks off, leaders of Jamaica’s top utility providers have reflected on the unprecedented solidarity that defined recovery efforts after Hurricane Melissa, emphasizing that national interest trumped commercial rivalry when communities needed help most.

Speaking at the Jamaica Observer Press Club last Thursday, Digicel Jamaica Chief Executive Officer Stephen Murad opened up about the rapid shift in priorities after the storm left large swathes of western Jamaica reeling from destruction. While daily competition for customers and market share is a standard part of the telecommunications and utility industries, Murad noted that every organization put their competitive tensions aside to focus on community recovery.

“At the end of the day, our core mission as local entities is protecting Jamaica. That’s what drives every decision we make right now,” Murad explained. He highlighted that collaboration across the sector has strengthened dramatically since Hugh Grant took the helm at the Jamaica Public Service (JPS), noting that cross-company coordination is now seamless. “Hugh and I can have all the market rivalry in the world — that’s good for customers, actually — but when disaster hits, it’s country first, no exceptions. No matter what brand you wear, we’re all Jamaicans first. Thousands of people are still living with the after-effects of one of the most devastating storms we’ve seen in decades, and we can never forget that.”

Murad added that Digicel’s commitment to recovery stretched far beyond just restoring damaged cell service. Months after the hurricane passed, the company continues to support impacted communities across the island. As a major local employer with roughly 1,000 workers in Jamaica, Murad noted that the recovery of communities is directly tied to the well-being of the company’s own team and their families.

Similar commitments to cross-sector cooperation and long-term resilience were echoed by Stephen Price, Vice-President and General Manager of Flow Jamaica. Price outlined that the sector is currently walking a tightrope: working to upgrade and reinforce critical infrastructure to withstand future storms while absorbing skyrocketing costs driven by post-disaster recovery and ongoing global supply chain disruptions.

Price revealed that Flow has poured roughly US$85 million into recovery works since Hurricane Melissa hit in November, with an additional US$27 million invested in expanding network capacity to meet surging demand for connectivity in the storm’s aftermath. Beyond immediate repairs, the company has expanded backup power generation systems, moved roughly 80 kilometers of transmission lines underground to reduce storm vulnerability, and reinforced critical facilities that are at risk of storm surge damage.

Still, Price cautioned that building climate-resilient infrastructure carries a very heavy price tag for Jamaica, a small island developing state that is disproportionately impacted by climate change. “This level of infrastructure costs real money, and we know what kind of pressure that puts on our already strained national economy,” he said. “We’ve seen inflation jump since the hurricane, but none of the major utility providers have raised customer rates yet. We’ve absorbed all the increases in fuel prices and the extra supply chain costs so far.”

Price noted that cost pressures go far beyond fuel: petroleum-based materials, fiber optic infrastructure, shipping, and all imported construction inputs have grown drastically more expensive in recent years. While providers are working hard to shield consumers from these costs for as long as possible, he warned that continued large-scale investment in resilience could eventually require moderate rate adjustments to keep upgrades on track.

At the National Water Commission (NWC), Corporate Public Relations Manager Delano Williams outlined the agency’s new preparations for the 2024 hurricane season. The NWC is investing roughly J$1.2 billion in additional backup generators for major water treatment facilities and secondary distribution sites across the island. The agency has also strengthened pre-negotiated agreements with private trucking contractors to speed up potable water deliveries to cut-off communities during emergency outages.

For JPS, Jamaica’s main electricity provider, Chief Operating Officer Lance Becca shared that the company has expanded formal partnership agreements with overseas utilities and equipment suppliers. The new pacts allow JPS to access critical replacement parts and emergency supplies much faster after major storms, strengthening the company’s overall contingency planning and response capacity for the upcoming hurricane season.

A heartfelt thanksgiving service to celebrate the life and legacy of former educator Dr. Sylvia Palmer-Dunn was held on Sunday at the Old Harbour Seventh-day Adventist Church, located in the parish of St. Catherine. Among the attendees gathered to mourn the loss and honor the memory of the respected former educator was Member of Parliament Marlene Malahoo Forte, who represents the St. James West Central constituency. During the service, Forte offered personal words of comfort and consolation to her cousin Derrick Dunn, the relative of the late Dr. Palmer-Dunn. Standing nearby and bearing witness to the moment of shared grief and support was another family cousin, Angela Chapman, who positioned herself to the right of the gathering. The memorial event brought together family, friends, and community members to reflect on Dr. Palmer-Dunn’s contributions to education and her impact on the lives of those around her. The service was documented by photographer Garfield Robinson, who captured the intimate moment of condolence between the family members.

Seven months ago, Category Five Hurricane Melissa tore through the coastal community of New Town in Black River, St Elizabeth, Jamaica, leaving a trail of shattered homes and disrupted lives. As the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season approaches, local residents are navigating uneven paths to recovery, with stark differences in how families are able to prepare for the next potential storm.

For two locals actively rebuilding their properties, investment in reinforced construction is a top priority to avoid repeating last year’s trauma. Retiree Stennet Lewis, a Jamaica-born former U.S. military member and government agent who returned to his hometown to settle permanently after decades abroad, has poured personal resources into strengthening his rebuilt roof. “I imported most of the hurricane straps, galvanized nails, and high-grade roofing shingles directly from the United States, and we’re using solid two-by-six lumber for the framework,” Lewis explained while overseeing construction crews at his property on Friday. “My whole goal is to have every reinforcement finished before a storm hits, so I can finally settle back home peacefully and enjoy the life I came back for.”

A short distance away, veteran local roof carpenter Andre Bigby is finally turning his attention to his own family home, after spending weeks in the immediate aftermath of the storm repairing dozens of damaged roofs for neighbors across the community. Like Lewis, Bigby is prioritizing hardened construction techniques he did not have access to for his own property before the storm. “We’re installing heavy-duty hurricane straps and J-bolts that anchor the roof plating directly to the rafters,” Bigby said, demonstrating the hardware during construction. “I’ve already added these reinforcements to every home I’ve worked on since the storm, and it’s long past time my own place got the same protection.”

Bigby’s journey to rebuilding has been a long one. He survived the storm by fleeing his collapsing home for shelter in a parked car in his garage, where he waited out the aftermath for roughly two weeks after a falling star apple tree triggered his roof to lift off. His family applied for government roofing relief through Jamaica’s Ministry of Labour and Social Security, which assessed the damage three weeks after the storm, but the family has yet to receive any assistance. “Everything you see here is self-funded,” Bigby noted. Despite the harrowing experience, he says he has processed the trauma and feels confident in his new preparations. “I’ve seen the worst that can happen, and now I’m ready. I don’t think any coming storm will hit as hard as Melissa did, and I’m prepared either way.”

Not all residents share that sense of cautious optimism, however. For Sasha Dillion, a renter who has long aspired to own her own home, every rainfall triggers new anxiety, as her rental property’s damaged roof has never been repaired. Dillion and her family of four already endured a terrifying ordeal during Melissa, when their roof tore off mid-storm and forced them to seek emergency shelter with neighbors. The trauma of that experience has left lasting impacts: her 10-year-old son now suffers from panic attacks during heavy rain or strong wind, crying whenever unstable weather hits.

Dillion has already purchased a plot of land to build her own home, and has managed to collect a small supply of roofing materials, but she lacks the funds to move construction forward. As hurricane season nears, she and her family remain in a constant state of fear. “I just need a little help to get started. Even a small two-bedroom home would be enough to take this weight off our shoulders,” she said. “Every day I worry another storm will come, and we’ll be right back where we were last year. I just want a safe place my family doesn’t have to be scared in anymore.”

For Lewis, the widespread destruction Melissa left across his childhood hometown remains a painful sight. While he welcomes the Jamaican government’s proposed plan to relocate and rebuild Black River further inland to reduce future storm risk, he says residents are waiting for visible, tangible progress and more widespread relief for post-storm rebuilding. “I understand government work has procedures, and it doesn’t happen overnight,” Lewis said. “But people need to see action, to know leaders are dedicated to helping us get back on our feet. That reassurance means a lot when you’re staring down a new hurricane season after what we just went through.”

Across the community, photos from the area show the uneven recovery: active construction crews from the Jamaica Defence Force working on homes in nearby New Holland, Bigby demonstrating his reinforced building hardware, Dillion resting her head in her hand amid ongoing worry, and abandoned damaged homes still standing empty seven months after the storm.

For nearly 15 years, Claudette Grant has navigated an unrelenting series of hardships, all while clinging to her faith to hold her family together. The Jamaican mother has dedicated every waking moment to caring for her teenage daughter Hannahlisa Hall, who lives with a severe case of sickle cell disease that has left her with ongoing health complications and a need for constant, round-the-clock care. What makes Grant’s fight even more staggering is that she faces her own undiagnosed health complications and crippling unpaid medical debt that has left the family in dire financial straits – yet she says she still gives thanks every day that her daughter is still alive.

Hannahlisa’s battle with illness began moments after she was born, when doctors diagnosed her with full-blown sickle cell disease, a chronic genetic blood disorder that causes intense pain, organ damage, and heightened risk of stroke and infection. By the time she was just nine years old, in 2017, she had already suffered four separate strokes, a devastating turn that left her with long-term neurological impacts. Her story first gained public attention in a 2021 feature published by the *Jamaica Observer*, which highlighted her family’s struggle to access affordable, consistent care. Years later, the teen is now approaching her 15th birthday on June 16, but her health challenges have not eased.

Grant explains that Hannahlisa continues to experience frequent, debilitating seizures that disrupt her daily life. While doctors have prescribed anti-seizure medication, Grant says the treatment has done little to reduce the frequency or intensity of these episodes. From early childhood, Hannahlisa has been a regular inpatient at local hospitals, often requiring admission two to three times a month to manage sickle cell complications. Each hospital stay adds another layer of stress, Grant says, because the resulting medical bills far outpace the family’s limited income. With no way to cover the escalating costs, unpaid debt has piled up, and hospital administrators contact Grant regularly to demand payment.

The most recent large bill came after a three-week admission to the University Hospital of the West Indies this past December, which totaled JMD $326,000 – a sum Grant has been completely unable to pay. Most recently, Hannahlisa was admitted again after developing a fever and shortness of breath on a school morning; doctors opted to keep her for observation given her complex medical history, adding even more to the family’s outstanding balance.

To be available for every emergency and daily care need, Grant had to give up her job entirely, eliminating the family’s only steady source of income. That sacrifice has only worsened their financial insecurity, but Grant says she has no other choice – Hannahlisa cannot be left alone for any extended period of time. Compounding this already overwhelming situation is Grant’s own declining health. She recently experienced a dangerous fainting spell that landed her in the hospital, testing that revealed a cyst on her left abdomen, and persistent high blood pressure that leaves her exhausted and unwell most days.

Despite being in need of ongoing medical care herself, Grant puts her daughter’s needs first, juggling multiple hospital appointments while struggling to keep up with costs. “Hannahlisa depends on me for help, and I don’t feel good within myself. I have to take her to hospital and I also have to go to hospital. It is even worse now to know that financially and in every aspect I need help,” Grant told the *Observer*. Even amid these overwhelming challenges, Grant says her faith has kept her family grounded. “A God a keep the family together. We pray and God keeps the family together,” she said, emphasizing that she is grateful her daughter has lived to see her 15th year, an outcome many would not have expected given the severity of her illness.

The family is now reaching out to the public for any assistance to cover mounting medical costs and basic living expenses. Community members or other donors wishing to support Claudette Grant and Hannahlisa Hall can contact Grant directly at (876) 589-1468.