Hurricane Melissa causes more than US$6 billion in damage to Jamaica

 

Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness has declared that Hurricane Melissa has delivered a severe blow to Jamaica's economy, causing death and destruction in its wake, and warned that the economic recovery will take several years. 

 

Making a statement in the House of Representatives on Tuesday afternoon, the Prime Minister said preliminary estimate of the damage caused by the storm now stands between US$6 and US$7 billion, or up to 32 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). 

 

He said the storm severely damaged the tourism and agriculture sectors, the country's road network, housing stock, hospitals and critical infrastructure in western Jamaica. 

 

"Physical damage to housing, commercial buildings, roads, electricity, water and telecommunications infrastructure is estimated between US$6 to US$7 billion, equivalent to roughly 28 to 32 per cent of last fiscal year's GDP. It is, members, a major hit to our economy, and I want the country to appreciate that we have never had a disaster of this magnitude with this economic footprint in terms of the impact. Not Gilbert, not Ivan; all of those were relatively small to our GDP. To lose 30 per cent of your GDP is significant," he admitted, noting that the figure was still preliminary and expected to rise as further assessments take place. 

 

He warned that there will be a significant slow down in the economy, with preliminary estimates suggesting short term economic output could decline by 8 to 13 per cent.

 

"We anticipate a temporary slow down in economic activity, particularly in the most affected parishes. Agricultural output will decline in the short term as farmers, replant and livestock operations recover. The tourism sector, while resilient and working swiftly to reopen, will require targeted support to restore capacity and confidence. Small and medium-sized enterprises, especially those in retail, manufacturing and services and the creative industries, have sustained significant losses and will need liquidity and recovery support to rebuild inventories, repair their facilities and restart operations. 

 

"At the same time, supply chains for food, construction materials and consumer goods are being actively restored, though some market disruption may occur in the immediate weeks ahead. A very preliminary estimate suggests that short term economic output could decline by 8 to 13 per cent. Madam Speaker, this means that revenues will decline as well as economic activity slows, even as expenditures must increase the finance emergency relief, recovery and reconstruction. This will place pressure on our fiscal targets," he cautioned.

 

The Prime Minister revealed that hundreds of thousands of Jamaicans are now homeless in the aftermath of the deadly storm.

 

"Leveraging the national geospatial intelligence capacity, the government has, for the first time in our history, executed a rapid high resolution national housing damage assessment. This effort coordinated through the National Spatial Data Management Branch and supported by international technology partners, analysed more than 428,000 buildings across Jamaica. Satellite data and drone verification indicate that approximately 116,000 structures sustained severe or catastrophic damage, concentrated in Westmoreland, St. Elizabeth and Manchester," he disclosed. 

 

He said 40 per cent of the island has been damaged by the storm.

 

The Prime Minister added that millions of dollars will be provided by the government for the trucking of water to ravaged communities.

 

Members of Parliament in the worst affected parishes of Westmoreland, Hanover, St. James, St. Elizabeth, Manchester, and Trelawny will receive $2 million. MPs in selected constituencies within St. Catherine, St. Andrew, Clarendon and St. Ann will receive $1.5 million. 

 

 

Prime Minister Holness revealed that learning for approximately 150,000 students has been disrupted, as 446 schools have been impacted. 

 

"We have all seen the images, roof loss, classrooms flooded, learning tools destroyed. Many schools also face extended outages of electricity, water and internet. The situation in the western parishes is particularly grave and poses a real risk of significant learning loss. Our children need their classrooms and the structure they provide. Every day out of school is a day of lost opportunity. Yet, Madam Speaker, we must also be pragmatic. The doors of many schools cannot reopen immediately," he acknowledged. 

 

"So, while we move with urgency to repair and rebuild, we must act now to resume learning through innovative and flexible arrangements so that no child is left behind," he added, outlining that the government's focus is now on three clear priorities - safe reopening, where facilities permit; continuity of learning through blended, remote and alternative sites, where needed; and accelerated reconstruction to return students to permanent classrooms as soon as possible.