Lead Stories

Hugh Grant, president and CEO of JPS.
December 9, 2025 by Mickalia Kington

JPS CEO: Full underground power grid too costly for Jamaica

While the widespread destruction caused by Hurricane Melissa has intensified calls for underground electricity infrastructure, Jamaica Public Service (JPS) CEO Hugh Grant says the cost and complexity…
Ewan McPherson (left) and Anecia McRae are happy they secured a few care packages in Black River, St Elizabeth, as they prepare to walk back home with their three-month-old baby last Wednesday.
December 9, 2025 by Tanesha Mundle

Couple with newborn battling homelessness after roof collapse

“Sometimes mi haffi show dem a picture a mi baby to get help,” lamented Ewan McPherson, as he stood near his three-month-old baby after collecting care packages in Black River, St Elizabeth. His words…
Kerensia Morrison, member of parliament for St Catherine North Eastern, handd a bag of Irish potato seeds to Guys Hill vegetable farmer Alrick Gordon.
December 9, 2025 by Ruddy Mathison

‘We will come up short’

Hurricane Melissa has left widespread destruction across St Catherine North Eastern, with farmers reporting millions of dollars in losses, particularly within the small-scale livestock and poultry…
Roderick ‘Latty’ Brissett.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

‘Latty survived the hurricane, but not the mud’

On his 68th birthday, Roderick ‘Latty’ Brissett felt only a little feverish. By the fourth day, the man who seldom got sick slipped away, taken by leptospirosis after the storm. Brissett ran every…
Inside the damaged Howie’s ‘100 Pot’ restaurant.
December 9, 2025 by Tanesha Mundle

ECONOMY IN SHAMBLES

From roadside eateries to boutique beachfront guesthouses and attractions, small business operators across St Elizabeth are counting millions in losses following the passage of Hurricane Melissa…
What is left of Debbie-Ann Dixon’s plantain farm in Elderslie, St Elizabeth, after the passage of Hurricane Melissa.
December 9, 2025 by Livern Barrett

BATTERED, WIPED OUT

With Hurricane Melissa bearing down on Jamaica, Debbie-Ann Dixon devised a plan to save over 500 pounds of “fit” plantains on her sizeable farm in Elderslie, a community located in northwestern St…
A single rod used to ground the establishment is all that is left of Eggy’s on the Beach in Treasure Beach, St Elizabeth.
December 9, 2025 by Andre Williams

‘Mi seven youth broke mi heart’

Two seniors who once had thriving culinary establishments at separate locations in the Hurricane Melissa-ravaged parish of St Elizabeth ponder their next move, living a reality that is as…
Former Jamaican Prime Minister P.J. Patterson.
December 9, 2025 by Erica Virtue

Patterson: Vulnerable countries must demand climate justice

Former Prime Minister P. J. Patterson says small island states like Jamaica, which are highly vulnerable to climate change despite contributing little to global emissions, must use every international…
Gerald Miller (right), health promotion and education officer for Westmoreland, educating residents on the risks of contracting leptospirosis and other diseases from the nearby Ancho River.
December 9, 2025 by Mickalia Kington

DEADLY RISK

WESTERN BUREAU: Days before a leptospirosis outbreak was officially declared across several Jamaican parishes, including Westmoreland, public health officials were already warning residents in…