Drainage Study of Montego Bay Identifies Potential Solutions to Flooding

The Government has completed a drainage study of Montego Bay, St. James, which has identified potential solutions to long-standing flooding in communities such as Catherine Hall.

Making his contribution to the 2026/27 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Wednesday (June 17), Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Infrastructure Development with responsibility for Works, Hon. Robert Morgan, said the study revealed the magnitude of the flooding risks facing the city.

“We found that the rainfall exceeded 350 millimetres in 24 hours, with peak intensities reaching 295 millimetres per hour. We also found that the Montego River recorded peak flows of approximately 2,132 to 2,653 cubic metres per second, consistent with a 500-year return period event,” he disclosed.

Minister Morgan explained that these flows exceed the design capacity of the Barnett Street Bridge by approximately 1,600 per cent.

“That is the scale of the climate reality we are now facing. In response, we are going to increase the conveyance capacity, make maintenance easier and improve performance in the flat terrain in the Catherine Hall area,” he said.

The Minister indicated that the Government has a proposed system, the Montego Bay River Flood Control Plan, which is still being assessed

This, he explained, is designed to preserve the existing levee system with controlled discharge points and backflow prevention measures.

Meanwhile, he shared that the Montego Bay Perimeter Road Project is 85 per cent complete.

He said the original contract was valued at $274 million but was revised to $354 million when the Long Hill Bypass was added.

“Not only is the Montego Bay Perimeter Road Project improving travel time and reliability but it’s also, as a residue of it, going to improve the drainage situation in Montego Bay to ensure that the people of West Green and Catherine Hall are not subjected to the devastating floods they faced under [Hurricane] Melissa,” Mr. Morgan said.