MONTEGO BAY, St James — The cost of Hurricane Melissa’s wrath across St James parish has soared past $750 million, with local authorities bracing for an additional $95 million in operational fallout as the recovery unfolds into early next year.
Municipal leaders confirmed the estimate during the St James Municipal Corporation’s latest monthly meeting, where Mayor Richard Vernon detailed the toll taken on State-owned properties and services. “The financial impact is staggering,” Vernon acknowledged, noting that key assets such as the Charles Gordon Market and Spring Mount’s water supply infrastructure have suffered critical damage.
The market — a vital economic hub in Montego Bay — was stripped of its roof, halting recent improvement works and displacing vendors. Simultaneously, structural damage to the Municipal Corporation’s Union Street headquarters and land slippage at Spring Mount have only deepened the crisis.
Beyond physical destruction, the storm has choked the parish’s revenue-generating operations. “Several of our traditional income channels have been crippled, compromising service delivery across the board,” Vernon said. “The loss of revenue is already being felt.”
Despite the financial blow, the mayor emphasized that recovery is progressing. Municipal operations have resumed, and public car parks are set to reopen, signaling a step towards normalized civic life. Road clearance has also gained momentum, with over 900 truckloads of debris already removed and several major corridors returning to single-lane access to facilitate commerce and mobility.
Power restoration remains a challenge. Roughly 81.4% of Jamaica Public Service (JPS) customers in the parish remain in the dark. A full reconnection schedule is expected from JPS in the coming days, but for now, many communities remain without electricity nearly two weeks after Melissa made landfall.
Efforts to support displaced residents continue. As of Thursday, 353 individuals remain in 29 shelters scattered across the parish. Relief efforts have been hampered by logistical obstacles but remain active.
In light of the devastation, this year’s holiday celebrations will be subdued. The parish’s annual Christmas Tree lighting ceremony will be stripped of its usual fanfare, replaced with a solemn gathering and prayer vigil. “We must honor the lives lost,” Vernon stated, confirming five fatalities attributed to the hurricane.
While the road to full recovery is long and expensive, the parish government is determined to rebuild. “We are open for business,” Vernon affirmed. “This community is strong, and the work to restore it is well underway.”
