- PM to ask Cabinet for emergency funding
Clinton Pickering
Freelance Writer
Confronted by the worst flooding disaster ever witnessed in Montego Bay, Prime Minister Andrew Holness is to ask Cabinet to approve emergency funding to restore serious losses to both the public and private sectors.
He said it was both an intense and unusual weather event, “but it is becoming the new norm. We have seen intense rainfall like this in April, in May, in June and we are now seeing it in October and November.” And, he pointed out, the forecast is for more rainfall going into the weekend when it probably will intensify.
Having toured Montego Bay on Wednesday with Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie, Minister of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Dr. Horace Chang; Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett; Attorney General Marlene Malahoo Forte and a host of central and local government officials, Prime Minister Holness said: “The government will support, as much as we can, the recovery effort.”
He said he would be speaking with the Minister of Social Security “to ensure that persons who have been affected, who have lost property, especially owners, that there is some assistance provided. “I can’t say it will be a lot but we will assist.”
He commended the St James Municipal Corporation (StJMC) “for the incredible response that I have observed.” The Prime Minister also paid tribute to the “incredible resilience of spirit” displayed by the people of Montego Bay. “I haven’t seen one person with defeatist attitude,” he told a Press Conference in the Corporation’s Council Chamber.
Prime Minister Holness was assured that the city would be back to normal within another two days “providing there are no more phenomenal weather events to affect the people of Montego Bay.”
Minister McKenzie lamented that this week has not been good for Local Government with the parishes of St James, Portland and St Catherine experiencing severe flooding. “Coming here to St James and Montego Bay this morning, I was totally blown away.” But he said it was the responsibility of his ministry to work closely with StJMC to ensure that we return normality to the areas that have been affected.
EMERGENCY FUND
As an emergency measure, he said the ministry was allocating $10 million from an Equalization Fund to complement $10 million which he had already authorized Chairman of the StJMC and Mayor of Montego Bay, Homer Davis to draw down from an Emergency Fund.
Further, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), the Ministry of Labour and Social Security along with the St James Disaster Parish Coordinator “will move immediately to start to do the assessment of individuals who have sustained damage over the last 24 hours. The Jamaica Fire Brigade will be at the disposal of St James Municipal Corporation to assist in the washing down and doing what is necessary in regards to getting back sections of Montego Bay in operation.”
Minister McKenzie said he was happy that there was no report of loss of life “but there has been extensive damage that has been done to private and public property.” He said he would be back in Montego Bay next Tuesday for two days making an in-depth assessment of “and to see how best we can respond to this major crisis.”
Meanwhile, Mayor Davis said the corporation had activated its emergency system “and if it takes us 24, 36, 48 hours, my effort is to return Montego Bay to normal by Sunday of this week.”
