Chrissy Lumsden
Jamaica is a beautiful country which has been devastated by Hurricane Melissa in the last quarter of 2025. Today, Jamaicans are experiencing an increased cost of living crisis and poor living conditions with working Jamaicans only receiving national minimum wage JMD$400 equivalent to £2 per hour. This is leaving parts of Jamaica, particularly the rural areas impoverished.
Hurricane Melissa Devastates Jamaica’s
Infrastructure
Hurricane Melissa has left behind destruction in its wake. A human studies practitioner for over 20 years, Diane Cokewright, 62, shares her experience on how this hurricane severely affected her family, and her thoughts on rebuilding after this catastrophic disaster.
When asked about her family who are still living in Jamaica, she said: “It is a major concern.”
She added: “I have two aunts in Jamaica who are quite old, in their eighties, who have never had any children.
“This poses a problem, because they don’t have any carers.
“I have had to put them in an old peoples’ home and pay for their care. They don’t have a state pension.”
According to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, a total number of 45 Jamaicans have died, with 141 injured. About 735,000 people were evacuated ahead of Melissa’s landfall as a category 5 hurricane, one of the deadliest in recent years.
Diane has said: “The infrastructure has been compromised to a degree in Jamaica.
“In order to build the infrastructure back up, the complications of getting aid from other countries, especially with the political movement throughout the world, there is a battle with other countries particularly the Americas, the Chinese and the South (for our natural resources.)
“Those Jamaicans, who do not want to be sucked into this dilemma, because of Melissa have become vulnerable.”
Diane has also worked for several years as a consultant, advising residential homes’ issues that could affect impending CQC inspections. She concludes that Jamaicans receiving aid hope that this will not become a problem for them in the future.
Support the Atlantic Hurricane Season Recovery Fund – Center for Disaster Philanthropy