Accompong Maroons Chief Richard Currie said with the aid of the JDF, the aim is to repair all the homes damaged during Hurricane Melissa.
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Racquel Porter reports
By Kimone Witter
Members of the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) Engineering Corps have started repair work on the roofs of houses that were damaged by Hurricane Melissa in the Maroon community of Accompong Town in St. Elizabeth.
Activities got underway on December 18, following a meeting in Accompong involving the Full Maroon Council, JDF, Ministry of Labour and Social Security and political representatives.
The development comes two weeks after Accompong Chief Richard Currie rejected the offer from Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness to deploy members of the military in the community to aid in the recovery and reconstruction efforts.
Chief Currie said the leadership of the Maroon community could not accept members of the military roaming the area.
But in a post on Instagram on Monday, Minister of Culture Olivia Grange said members of the JDF Engineering Corps were on the ground, working with the community, and things were progressing well.
Ms. Grange noted that the assistance, which followed a commitment from Prime Minister Holness, came three days before Christmas and a few weeks from the major annual festival in Accompong scheduled for January 6.
Chief Currie, through an Instagram post, also indicated that the December 18 meeting was convened to address and clarify matters regarding military aid in the recovery process in Accompong.
He said the meeting was a success and all major concerns addressed including ambiguities around communications, specific community liaisons, the presence of weapons among other matters.
Chief Currie said with the aid of the JDF, the aim is to repair all the homes damaged during the storm.
He said the JDF will be working from the Luana/Maggotty area and will be mobilising daily to assist with the recovery.
The Maroons have also been reassured that there will be full disclosure and open communication with weekly update meetings throughout the execution of the planned scope of work.
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