The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) is reporting that four shelters across the island are currently open, consequent on the passage of Tropical Storm Rafael. Speaking with JIS News on Tuesday (November 5), ODPEM’s Acting Director General, Richard Thompson, said two shelters have been opened in Clarendon, at Rocky Point, and the Drop-In Centre in May Pen....

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, is urging continued vigilance as Cyclone #18 continues developing and Jamaica remains under a Tropical Storm Warning. “I am asking everyone to take due care, and to heed the Advisories being published. I also want to assure everyone that the Government has taken the necessary measures to secure lives and...

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie (left); Spanish Town Mayor, Councillor Norman Scott (centre), and Mayor of St. Ann’s Bay, Councillor Michael Belnavis, hold hands while participating in Sunday’s (November 3) Local Government Month church service at Webster Memorial United Church in St. Andrew.

Voters in the Morant Bay and Aenon Town Divisions in St. Thomas and Clarendon, respectively, will head to the polls on November 22 to elect new Councillors. This follows the deaths of former Morant Bay Councillor, Rohan “Washy” Bryan, on May 1, and former Aenon Town Councillor, Marjorie McLeod, on September 1. The announcement was made today (October 30), during...

The Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) has donated smoke detectors and fire extinguishers to two children’s homes in St. Andrew. Mary’s Child, a programme under the Mustard Seed Communities, received 26 smoke detectors and two fire extinguishers, while the Jamaica National Children’s Home was given 10 smoke detectors and two fire extinguishers. The presentations, which were made on Tuesday (October 29),...

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, says he will be making a comprehensive submission to Cabinet aimed at bolstering solid waste management initiatives in the country. “I am now preparing a submission to take to Cabinet that will speak to what is going to be required to give solid waste the kind of injection that is...

Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Richard Vernon, has announced a Mayor’s charity concert to rally renewed support for the long-standing Mayor’s Charity Fund, dedicated to serving the City’s most vulnerable residents. Speaking at a press conference on Monday, October 28 in the Corporation’s Chambers, the Mayor noted that the concert will be held at the Iberostar Hotel along the Rose...