With the 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season formally beneath means and projected to be extremely lively, the St. James Municipal Company is ramping up catastrophe preparedness efforts throughout the parish.
In the course of the Company’s Catastrophe Preparedness, Hazard Mitigation and Security Committee assembly on Thursday (June 19), Spatial Planner, Ricardo Miller, reported {that a} sensitisation workshop was carried out with 33 shelter managers on June 13 as a part of the parish’s hurricane-readiness efforts.
Mr. Miller stated the workshop centered on important well being and security protocols inside shelters, emergency response coordination and the mobilisation of first-aid responders to make sure that amenities function successfully throughout a disaster.
The session was carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and Social Safety, Workplace of Catastrophe Preparedness and Emergency Administration (ODPEM), St. James Public Well being Division, Jamaica Hearth Brigade, and Jamaica Purple Cross.
“We additionally carried out a hurricane-preparedness workshop on the Hyatt Zilara Lodge, situated in Rose Corridor, with 30 members of workers of the Company,” Mr. Miller indicated.
In a bid to additional bolster readiness, he suggested that inspections had been carried out at off-site storage amenities and up to date stock data have been submitted to the Company’s procurement workplace.
In the meantime, help continues for residents already impacted by extreme climate occasions and different disasters corresponding to fireplace.
Mr. Miller famous that in Might, 10 fireplace victims obtained aid provides and constructing supplies as a part of the Company’s ongoing help efforts.
The parish of St. James has roughly 59 lively emergency shelters, all of that are presently in a state of readiness for the hurricane season.
For his half, Chairman of the Catastrophe Preparedness, Hazard Mitigation and Security Committee, Councillor Arthur Lynch, offered updates on drainage infrastructure upkeep.
He famous that whereas no main blockages, overflows, or collapses have been reported in drains throughout Montego Bay, the Company stays dedicated to ongoing inspections, cleansing, and vital repairs to take care of infrastructure resilience.
“As for the North Gully, the group there continues to hold out month-to-month upkeep as effectively,” Mr. Lynch famous.
The 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season, which runs from June 1 to November 30, is anticipated to carry between 13 and 19 named storms, six to 10 hurricanes, and three to 5 main hurricanes.
In attendance on the assembly had been representatives from the Ministry of Labour and Social Safety, Jamaica Public Service Firm (JPS), Nationwide Water Fee (NWC), Rural Agricultural Growth Authority (RADA), Jamaica Constabulary Pressure (JCF), and Jamaica Purple Cross, amongst others.
They had been joined by Deputy Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Dwight Crawford, and different Councillors.
