The Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) has reported a mixed trend in structural fires across the island for 2025, with commercial building fires showing a marginal increase, while residential fires recorded a slight decline. Commissioner, JFB, Stewart Beckford, told JIS News that of the 11,048 genuine fire calls received last year, 1,555 or 14 per cent were structural fires. “We responded...

Prime Minister, Dr. the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, has informed that inflows from the US$6.7 billion in development financing, designed to support Jamaica’s recovery from Hurricane Melissa, will be channelled through the National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (NaRRA). The US$6.7 billion is being provided through CAF – Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Inter-American...

Bushfires remained a major challenge in 2025, with the Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) reporting a 26.2 per cent increase in incidents across the island. “We have seen, over time, maybe over the last four years, bushfires remaining at a consistently high level. Last year, we responded to 5,710 such incidents, and that’s a 26.2 per cent increase over the previous...

The Earthquake Unit is seeking to dispel the common myth that hot temperatures or weather conditions cause earthquakes as the country prepares to close out Earthquake Awareness Month at the end of January. Addressing a recent JIS Think Tank, on Earthquake Awareness, Scientific Officer at the Earthquake Unit, Karleen Black, said seismic activity originates deep within the Earth’s crust and...

Jamaicans are being reminded of the importance of earthquake drills in building awareness on the appropriate response to the natural disaster. Parish Disaster Coordinator at the St. Mary Municipal Corporation, Adrian Tate, in an interview with JIS News following an earthquake drill at the St. Mary Technical High school recently, warned that an earthquake “is a very, very dangerous activity”....

The Government is on track to disburse the first set of monetary grants to citizens impacted by Hurricane Melissa, under the Shelter Recovery Programme (SRP), by the end of this month. Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon, confirmed the announcement during a post‑Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House on Wednesday (January 28)....

The first set of modular homes being procured by the Government to address housing issues in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa should arrive on the island next month, says Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon. “Those homes are expected in the country by the end of February. You would have heard of...