St. Elizabeth Residents Hailed as Resilient

Residents of St. Elizabeth have been hailed as resilient as the parish recovers in the aftermath of the recent passage of Hurricane Beryl.  

St. Elizabeth was one of the parishes hardest hit by the passage of Hurricane Beryl on July 3, causing severe structural and agricultural damage. 

In an interview with JIS News, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green lauded the citizens for their strength in the face of current challenges.  

Mr. Green, who also serves as Member of Parliament for South Western , St. Elizabeth noted that persons are remaining positive.  

“I have always said that St. Elizabeth has the most resilient people that you can find. I guess by nature we are farmers and fishers and as such we work with any eventuality. We understand that there are a number of things outside of our control, so what you have to do is stay positive and the people have remained positive despite suffering tremendous devastation,” he said.  

“Not only their livelihood’s been uprooted in terms of their agricultural and fishing enterprises, but again their homes. There are so many people who have to stay with family and friends, because they cannot go back into their houses. I think sometimes we don’t appreciate that when you lose your roof, you normally lose everything in the house…so to face that and still be positive it really takes internal resilience and the people of St. Elizabeth are internally resilient,” he added.  

Mr. Green also welcomed the recent announcement by Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr. that families whose houses have been destroyed by the hurricane will receive a grant of $400,000, while those whose homes are severely damaged will receive a grant of up to $150,000 and those who experienced minor damage will receive up to $50,000. 

It has been projected that some 8,700 houses islandwide will require some level of support from the Government to aid in their recovery and rebuilding.  

For his part, Head of the St. Elizabeth Police Division, Superintendent Coleridge Minto, recalled that the day after the hurricane passed, several residents came out to support the police and other agencies in clearing the roadway.  

“That speaks to the kind of community that we serve, people want peace in their communities, people want to see things get back to normal, and so we are supporting the various efforts,” he said.  

“We have also seen a number of corporations, non-government organizations (NGOs) along with government entities coming in to support particularly on the south side of the parish which was most affected by the passing of Hurricane Beryl,” Mr. Minto further stated.