As the Caribbean braces for the impact of Hurricane Melissa, communities across South Florida are answering the call for help, collecting donations and preparing shipments for those in Jamaica and surrounding islands expected to be hardest hit.
At Global Empowerment Mission in Doral, volunteers are already hard at work. The organization will serve as the main hub where supplies gathered across South Florida will be packed, palletized, and shipped to Jamaica as soon as it’s safe to do so.
Jamaicans in South Florida worry over family
“It is more than kind of distressing because you don’t know when and you don’t know how,” said Ewan Simpson, who lives in Jamaica.
Simpson was only supposed to be in South Florida for the weekend. Now, he fears losing communication with his children and close family once the storm hits.
“A lot of the communication being wired and above ground means once we get a storm, the first thing that’s being impacted are the poles and wires,” Simpson said.
Hurricane Melissa could be the most destructive storm Jamaica has seen, threatening a country about the size of Connecticut.
“The challenges with flooding and persons getting caved in, damage to road infrastructure, those are going to call for a lot of resources,” said Oliver Mair, Consul General of Jamaica.
Preparations underway
In communities like Lauderhill and Miramar, several drop-off locations have been set up to collect water, non-perishable food, hygiene kits, and other essentials.
“Even makeup kits for the ladies, for their dignity,” said Marlon Hill, lead mobilizer for Caribbean Strong.
On the island, residents are doing what they can to prepare.
“Persons are buying generators, you find persons buying mostly ply-boards to board their windows, their doors, and their businesses,” said Marvin Edwards from Kingston.
Melissa is expected to make landfall Tuesday morning.
“It has been raining for weeks now. So, we’re already talking about a waterlogged space. Some places are already flooded,” Simpson said.
Florida is home to the second-largest population of Jamaican Americans in the country, and many here are watching the storm closely.
Counsel General Mair is urging anyone with loved ones in Jamaica to take the warnings seriously.
Where you can donate
City of Miramar:
- Fire Station 19 – 6700 Miramar Parkway, Miramar, FL 33023
- Fire Station 70 – 9001 Miramar Parkway, Miramar, FL 33025
- Fire Station 84 – 14801 SW 27th Street, Miramar, FL 33027
- Fire Station 100 – 2800 SW 184th Avenue, Miramar, FL 33029
- Fire Station 107 – 11811 Miramar Parkway, Miramar, FL 33023
- Miramar Police Headquarters – 11765 City Hall Promenade, Miramar, FL 33025
City of Lauderhill:
- Lauderhill City Hall – 5581 W. Oakland Park Blvd.
- Veterans Park – 7600 NW 50th St.
- John Mullins Park – 2000 NW 55th Ave.
- Westwind Park – 4550 NW 82nd Ave.
- Lauderhill Historical Museum – 1080 NW 47th Ave.
- Joy’s Roti Delight – 1205 NW 40th Ave.
