Jamaicans living in the Boston area are anxious for friends and family as Hurricane Melissa moves slowly toward the Caribbean nation. The Category 5 storm is expected to be the most catastrophic in Jamaica’s history.
Niambe McIntosh, founder of the Peter Tosh Foundation and daughter of the famous musician, said her organization has been raising funds to send to community leaders and groups in Jamaica who can “really help the communities in which they’re in.”
“We were able to raise funds for a really large generator, so that people can plug in their phones and communicate or charge their lanterns or whatever chargeable devices they have post hurricane,” she said in a Zoom interview. McIntosh has spoken with organizations on the island, who are preparing food, water and shelter for the elderly and families who don’t have hurricane-ready homes.
“A lot of it is just people trying to tie down whatever they can tie down in preparation of the storm,” she said. McIntosh said a lot of her family members have access to generators, and are preparing in other ways — like her sister putting sandbags around her home as a barrier against rising water.
Jennifer James leads the Jamaican Association of Massachusetts, which is working with the Peter Tosh Foundation on the aid effort. She said they’re gathering medical supplies and working with shipping companies to get the aid delivered.
“We gonna be looking for Tylenol, cough medicines, cold medicine, a lot of that. So we gotta try to get those down there as possible,” she said.
However, the association’s shipping partners won’t have authorization to ship supplies until after the hurricane has hit. James also noted that airports in Jamaica are currently shuttered.
Her family is in St. Thomas, on the eastern part of the island, which she said is not expected to be hit hard. The group is coordinating to see where it will store medical supplies until they can be shipped. They’re also staying in communication with the Jamaican embassy to the U.S. to see what aid will be needed in the coming days.
Ernie Campbell is the owner and chef of Jamaica Mi Hungry, a local Caribbean eatery. He grew up in Jamaica and moved to Boston in 2001, but still his mom, nephew, and brother still live there.
He said the house they live in is “pretty safe” but they won’t know the full impact until the hurricane is over. “Sometimes it’s so dark you can see nothing,” he said.
He remembers one hurricane when he was a child. “I saw my neighbors’ houses lift up in the air, and then give way and drop ... I’m like, 'wow,' and that’s when I ran out and went to a church.”
Campbell hopes the storm won’t be as extreme as predicted. He tried to call friends and family on Monday, but wasn’t able to get through.
“I didn’t get anything, didn’t hear back until the phone just cut off, so that’s a big concern as well,” he said.
