Over 100,000 Post-hurricane Damage Assessments Completed

More than 100,000 household damage assessments have been completed across Jamaica in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, as part of the Government’s efforts to identify and support families affected by the disaster.

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., shared the update, noting that, to date, some 101,458 households have been assessed.

He was speaking to residents during the Trelawny leg of the Restoration of Owner or Occupant Family Shelters (ROOFS) Programme handover ceremony, held at Abundant Life Ministries Church in Bounty Hall on March 11.

Mr. Charles noted that the high number of assessments reflects both the widespread impact of Hurricane Melissa and the extensive work undertaken by teams across the island to reach affected communities.

He explained that improvements in the Ministry’s systems have enabled the assessment process to be carried out more efficiently than in previous disaster recovery efforts.

“During [previous disasters], in nine months or eight months or so, we were [only] able to assess less than 19,000 [households]. With the upgraded system and improving what we do, we were able to do 100,000 in four months,” the Minister stated.

Mr. Charles explained that the process begins with officers visiting homes to gather details about the damage sustained and its impact on occupants.

He further noted that the information collected during these visits is uploaded immediately to the Ministry’s system, after which the data is sent to the National Spatial Data Management Branch for verification before any benefits are approved.

Mr. Charles indicated that the verification process is critical to ensuring fairness in the distribution of assistance, explaining that it prevents duplication and safeguards transparency.

“What you’re doing is checking the list to make sure that one person doesn’t have their name on five houses,” he said.

The Minister added that once the verification process is completed, the information is approved, allowing payments to be issued to eligible households.