The Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) is urging persons to desist from making malicious false-alarm calls, as they not only waste the country’s resources but delay the response of firefighters to genuine fire calls, resulting in loss of life and property. The call comes from JFB’s Public Relations Officer, Emeleo Ebanks, who told JIS News that “1,119 times last year, someone...

Local Government and Rural Development Minister, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, says that the Ministry will be exploring ways to breathe new life into the Porus Market in Manchester. The facility has experienced a decline in economic activity since the closure of the abattoir some years ago. The Minister, who stopped at the market during a tour of South Manchester communities on...

Customer Relations Officer at North Eastern Parks and Markets (NEPM) Waste Management Limited (NEPM), Donasha Biggs, is reporting that more St. Ann communities have joined the plastic bottle separation drive. She told JIS News that since the initiative’s launch in the parish in February 2020, several other communities have come on board to participate and raise awareness. “This initiative started… in...

The Community of Banks in Clarendon is slated to benefit from major drainage upgrading and an electrification exercise for households, among other engagements, under the Government’s $650 million Rural Development Programme.  Minister of State in the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Hon. Homer Davis, says Banks is one of four communities islandwide where the programmed activities, designed to enhance the lives of residents and the overall economic...

Residents of Brown’s Town and its environs in St. Ann, on Friday (July 23), participated in a major plastic bottle collection drive organised by Recycling Partners of Jamaica in collaboration with several key stakeholder entities.   More than two truckloads of bottles were collected, as personnel highlighted the importance of separating plastics from other disposables and recycling these items in order to better preserve the environment.  Other participating partner entities included the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), and Forestry Department.  General...

Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, says that work has been completed on phase one of the $60-million renovation of the Black River Fire Station in St. Elizabeth. "The first phase includes building a perimeter fence, expanding the capacity of the drain and building a new facility to house fire trucks,” he said, during a tour of...

Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, says 98 per cent of emergency shelters in Western Jamaica are ready to protect and care for displaced Jamaicans in the event of a disaster. Following tours of shelters in Westmoreland and St. Elizabeth on Thursday (July 15) and Friday (July 16), respectively, the Minister  told journalists that the facilities...