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This mayor of Black River – a community referred to as “the epicenter” for Hurricane Melissa – has shared the monstrous storm surges and widespread devastation caused by the catastrophe.

Reflecting on the traumatic experience, Richard Solomon described enduring the intense storm at an emergency response center.

“The entire town of this area is in ruins,” he said. “The destruction is so severe that the prime minister classified this area as ground zero.”

Five individuals from Black River are confirmed to have died, but the mayor noted receiving word of additional fatalities that remain unconfirmed due to communication and travel difficulties.

“The hurricane came around eight in the morning and lasted for around nine hours, during which we were battered with strong gusts and torrential rainfall,” he explained.

“We got up to 16ft of flooding at the response center. It was a frightening moment for us, and we were hoping that it would not increase any further, because we were on the upper level, and frankly, when we saw the water climbing, it was a terrifying experience for us.”

The mayor explained that the town, situated in the severely affected south-western region of St Elizabeth, is lacking running water and power, and most structures have had their roofing. One official earlier described the town as flooded, with over half a million residents lacking electricity. A landslide has obstructed the primary routes of a nearby area, where roadways have been reduced to mud pits. Residents are now removing water from their houses and trying to salvage their possessions.

Rescue efforts and damage assessments have proven extremely difficult because all the town’s vehicles and critical services such as firefighting, law enforcement, hospitals and grocery stores were “immensely damaged,” notes the mayor.

The mayor is now focused on trying to help the most vulnerable, while also dealing with the individual toll of the devastation.

“My vehicle was completely covered by water. The roofing was lost, so I do understand the suffering that persons are experiencing, but what is a key focus for me now is to focus on getting assistance for the most at-risk at this time,” he explains.

The mayor estimates that it will take millions of local currency to rebuild Black River after the hurricane's annihilation. For now, he says, the main goal is clearing impassable roads, which have isolated the town.

“Efforts are underway to get the main roads and secondary routes here so that we can deliver aid in. The majority of our supermarkets, if not all, were severely affected so they will be unable to provide supplies to persons who are in need at this moment,” he says.

National leadership has seen the devastation personally, with an aerial tour of the region revealing 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 damaged, we can envision a tomorrow of it rising stronger and better,” he informed local media.

“It will be accomplished. So maintain the optimism, remain hopeful, and we will get through this, and we will reconstruct stronger,” he affirmed.