Media Home
UN Web TV
UN Audiovisual Library
UN PhotoIOM / JAMAICA HURRICANE BERYL AFTERMATH
Download
There is no media available to download.
Share
STORY: IOM / JAMAICA HURRICANE BERYL AFTERMATH
TRT: 03:39
SOURCE: IOM
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/NATS
DATELINE: AUGUST 2024, SAINT ELIZABETH, JAMAICA
1. Wide shot, views of damaged business
2. Wide shot, IOM staff assessing wreckage of Nakaya’s house
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Nakaya, Jamaican small farmer:
“As long as we have life, we take up the pieces. As long as we have life, we forget things because this is a part of nature”.
4. Wide shot, Nakaya getting out of his damaged house
5. Aerial shot of Nakaya’s destroyed house
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Carol Cogle, Jamaican small farmer:
“I stand and watch the soft top lift off, the sink flew, and plenty of rain. We were scared. Even though if I already experienced it, this is the third experience from (hurricane) Gilbert, but the second taking off the roof. We watched and watched it still, till the morning.”
7. Wide shot, Carol looking at her damaged roof
8. Wide shot, rain entering the house through damage roof
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Carol Cogle, Jamaican small farmer: “The main hope for the future, just getting back the building. Just getting the backup of the building so that my grandsons, my daughter, and myself can move back together.”
10. Wide shot, aerial shot of Carol’s house with IOM staff
11. Wide shot, aerial shot of damaged crops
12. Med shot, IOM staff assesses the houses heavily damaged by hurricane Beryl
13. Med shot, IOM staff talks to affected population
14. Wide shot, IOM staff visits damaged buildings
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Natasha Greaves, IOM interim head of office in Jamaica:
“So, under the UN umbrella the IOM is supporting in the area of shelter. We have received funding of 700,000 dollars to support 15,000 households with shelter repair and to support the rehabilitation and installation of equipment in three of the community centers across the parishes of Saint Elizabeth and Clarendon.”
15. Wide shot, aerial shot of damaged houses
In the rural farming community of Belmont, nestled in the southern parish of Saint Elizabeth, the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl is a stark reminder of nature’s unforgiving power.
Carol Cogle, a 56-year-old farmer, sits on a plastic chair amid the remnants of her home, her eyes reflecting the despair of losing everything she has built over the past three decades., “I stand and watch the soft top lift off, the sink fly, and plenty of rain. We were scared. Even though I already experienced it, this is the third experience from (hurricane) Gilbert, but the second taking off the roof. We watched and watched it still, till the morning,” she laments, surrounded by water-soaked mattresses, clothes, broken furniture, and shattered dreams.
Carol and her family are small farmers who make a living primarily from poultry, pigs, and goats. This livelihood was abruptly halted when Hurricane Beryl ravaged the island on 3 July. She now lives with her sister, her daughter, her son, and her granddaughter, solely relying on family support. ““The main hope for the future, just getting back the building. Just getting the backup of the building so that my grandsons, my daughter, and myself can move back together,” she remarks, staring at her broken roof as rain poured into little of what remained of her home.
Hurricane Beryl, a Category 4 storm, made landfall on 3 July, leaving a trail of destruction across Jamaica’s agricultural heartland. The storm caused an estimated USD 6.5 billion in damage, affecting approximately 45,000 farmers across the southern parishes of Clarendon, Manchester, and Saint Elizabeth.
Beryl took out its fury on farms, with staple crops such as plantains, yams, cassava, breadfruit, ackee, mangoes, and bananas decimated. The fishing and livestock industries also suffered significant losses. Compounding the challenges in southern Jamaica, electrical service continues to be disrupted as some power lines are still in need of repair.
According to Government of Jamaica estimates, Hurricane Beryl damaged 8,700 houses. Jamaica’s Ministry of Labour and Social Security has announced monetary rehabilitation grants for people whose homes have been damaged or destroyed, and also for 500 microbusiness operators whose livelihoods have been lost. The government has also said it intends to prioritize the reconstruction and restoration of schools and hospitals.
Nakaya, a 44-year-old farmer, Nakaya lost his livelihood, including 100 chickens that provided for his 67-year-old mother, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. Now, with only the walls of his house standing, he is determined to rebuild and seek support. “As long as we have life, we take up the pieces. As long as we have life we forget things because this is a part of nature.”
Working alongside the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is part of a wider UN effort to help Jamaicans recover from Beryl and build resilience against future storms. IOM is committed to supporting the most affected communities in Jamaica, which the hurricane has severely impacted. Our field teams are actively working to assess the damage with the aim of repairing their roofs and restoring their normal way of life," says Natasha Greaves, IOM's interim Head of Office in Jamaica.
IOM’s efforts will help 1,500 households in the most affected areas of Jamaica with roof replacements and repairs, along with replacement and repairs to windows and doors and plumbing, as well as rewiring electrical systems. IOM will also help reconstruct three community shelters. These initiatives are crucial for families like Rosemary's, who are eager to return to their homes and restore their livelihoods.
As Jamaica grapples with the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, the resilience and determination of its farming community shines through. But the looming threat of climate change adds a layer of uncertainty to their future. “We have no more trees, so climate change is already affecting us,” notes Rosemary, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable solutions to mitigate the impact of future storms.
