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This mayor of Black River – a community referred to as “ground zero” for Hurricane Melissa – has shared the immense flooding and widespread devastation wrought by the disaster.

Speaking on the traumatic experience, Richard Solomon described riding out the Category 5 storm at an emergency operating centre.

“Our community of Black River is devastated,” he stated. “The destruction is so catastrophic that the national leader classified this area as ground zero.”

Several people from the town are confirmed to have died, but the mayor noted hearing reports of other fatalities that are still being verified due to communication and transportation challenges.

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

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

The mayor explained that Black River, situated in the severely affected southwest region of the area, is without water and power, and the majority of structures have lost their roofing. An authority previously described the town as flooded, with more than 500,000 inhabitants without power. A mudslide has obstructed the main roads of Santa Cruz, where streets have been reduced to muddy tracks. Residents are now sweeping water from their houses and trying to rescue 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, hospitals and supermarkets were “immensely damaged,” notes Solomon.

He is now concentrating on trying to assist the most vulnerable, while also coping with the personal impact of the disaster.

“The mayor's car was totally submerged by water. The roofing went, so I fully grasp the suffering that people are experiencing, but what is a key focus for me now is to concentrate on getting aid relief for the most at-risk at this point,” he explains.

The mayor believes that it will take millions of Jamaican dollars to rebuild Black River after Melissa’s destruction. For now, he says, the main goal is clearing impassable roads, which have isolated the town.

“We are now trying to clear the main roads and secondary routes here so that we can deliver aid in. The majority of our supermarkets, if not all, were impacted negatively so they won’t be able to provide supplies to persons who are in dire straits at this moment,” he says.

The prime minister has witnessed the devastation first-hand, with an aerial tour of the area revealing the vast majority of roofs in the area had been destroyed.

“It is going to be a massive task to restore Black River. But although it is destroyed, we can vision a future of it rising stronger and improved,” he told reporters.

“It will be accomplished. So keep the positive outlook, keep hope alive, and we will get through this, and we will rebuild better,” he said.