Clinton Pickering
Freelance Writer

The St. James Municipal Corporation says it is fully prepared for any eventualities that may arise in the current hurricane season which started yesterday, June 1, 2021.

Giving this assurance at a news briefing last week, Chairman of the Corporation, Mayor Leeroy Williams said, “Jamaica is prone to hurricanes; we are in the hurricane zone so it’s not a matter of if it will come, it’s when it will come so we have to make sure that we are prepared.”

The StJMC has a Disaster Preparedness Hazard and Mitigation and Safety Committee on which sits representatives of all relevant government and private sectors agencies and the mayor says “it is prepared and ready in the event there is a hurricane and there are disasters.” Heavy equipment, including machinery which would be necessary to clear land slippages and other disruptions, have been mobilized through the JDF and the NWA.

Close contact is being maintained with agencies such as the fire brigade, Red Cross, public health services, which are designated first responders in the event of a disaster and Mayor Williams reports that “they all say that they are in a state of readiness.”
All councilors have also been placed on alert and are to ensure that drains and gullies in their divisions are cleaned to avoid excess flooding. Funds will be made available to them. Citizens are also implored to pay attention to flood gauges installed at flood prone areas of the city and to evacuate should the water reach danger levels.

Of major concern are the North and South gullies which run through the city. They are to be maintained by the NWA, but with the agency recently advising that it does not have money for that purpose, the mayor is giving an assurance that the municipal corporation will step up and clean them.

Regarding drains, Mayor Williams said road maintenance was ongoing but admitted that “funding is really an issue so things are going a bit slow.”

There are 63 shelters spread out across the parish and shelter managers have their kits with water boots, raincoats, flashlights and personal protective equipment, inclusive of masks and sanitizers to adhere to COVID protocols.

Disaster Preparedness Parish Co-ordinator Tamoy Sinclair, said Shelter Managers have been instructed on how to address persons who may find themselves seeking refuge. Also, a team drawn from the municipal corporation, fire brigade, the public health department and Ministry of Labour and Social Security has inspected the shelters and a COVID isolation area designated at each facility.

Reflecting on the massive flooding of downtown Montego Bay by the North Gully in 2017, Deputy Mayor Richard Vernon said lessons were learnt by residents on how to deal with situation that would arise should there be a recurrence.

He said to reduce the volume of debris accumulated during a flood, “work is currently going on to concrete the Capital Heights section of the gully and with an upgrade, we are expecting less silt to flow to the lower end and contribute to the overflow of the gully.”

Noel Thompson/Shamir Brown

Jamaica’s airlift capacity has received a boost after US based Frontier Airlines began operating into the tourist city of Montego Bay.
The inaugural flight from Miami, Florida touched down on the tarmac at the Sangster International Airport on Friday, with over 160 passengers and crewmembers. For Odette Dyer, Regional Director at the Jamaica Tourist Board, this is a welcomed move as it bodes well for local tourism industry that is currently in recovery mode.

“The arrival of this Frontier flight today is really significant for us as a destination. The fact that Frontier could choose to open a new route into Montego Bay in the middle of a pandemic really is an amazing thing, that’s a bold step they have taken” she remarked as she joined the welcoming party at the airport on Saturday. She continued with “I want to laud the executives of Frontier for making this decision to come into the destination at a time like this, this auger very well for our destination”.

Frontier is now expected to service the island three times weekly with flights on Monday, Friday and Saturday and is expected to bring on average one hundred and sixty passengers. This is set to be part and parcel of a larger body of work done by the JTB in securing a number of seats. According to Mrs. Dyer “between May and August of 2021, we have secured approximately eight hundred and thirty-two thousand air seats into the destination.

Sales Manager for Frontier Airlines, Alfredo Gonzales, related that they were excited about this new venture. “As you know the Jamaican community is very large, not only in South Florida but around the country so this gives an opportunity for families and friends to get together and our fares are so low that anybody can afford to come and visit their friends and relatives on both directions” he remarked.

He further noted that in Frontier coming to Jamaica, they saw an opportunity to connect families and friends. “It was the right time and the right product and I think with what Jamaica has to offer, wide opened spaces, gorgeous beaches, beautiful resorts, amazing culture, the customer of today is looking for that”.

Mayor of Montego Bay, Leeroy Williams, was also on hand to welcome the flight and sought to impress on visitors the benefits of coming to the island. ““I can assure them that with this Jamaican experience, in future, they will always be willing to come to Jamaica” indicating that Jamaica and Montego Bay in particular has what they want and need.

The inaugural flight was dubbed a smooth one by Captain Tyler Peterson, who guided the plane down from the states. He noted that he was happy with flying to Jamaica, which was the first in his career of over thirteen years of flying.

The new Harmony Beach Park in Montego Bay opened to the public yesterday (Tuesday, May 25). The facility will be open from Mondays to Fridays, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.; on Saturdays from 6 a.m. to 4p.m. and from 6 a.m. to 12 noon on Sundays.

The Urban Development Corporation (UDC) operators of the park, advises that guests to the free park, which is now the recreational focal point for the city of Montego Bay, will have use of the 600-metre jogging trail and lawn areas. The beach, children’s play areas and multi-purpose courts remain closed to the public at this time as the Corporation adheres to protocols of the Disaster Risk Management Act.

Harmony Beach Park was officially opened by Prime Minister Andrew Holness, on Friday May 21, 2021. In speaking on the importance of a Park such as Harmony, the Prime Minister emphasised that it represents the future of how urban development is done in Jamaica. “It embodies where we are going as a people in terms of urban planning and signals the commitment of the Government of Jamaica to introduce more green spaces in our communities. It is well documented that green spaces and other nature-based solutions offer alternate ways to increase the quality of urban environments. Green spaces promote healthy lifestyles, by improving both the health and wellness of residents. For this reason, I encourage you to see this Beach Park as a turning point for what you can expect from the public service and by extension, your Government as it relates to sustainability in development.

We recognize that development must be sustainable if it is to offer long-term benefits” said Holness.

There will be a maximum capacity of 500 persons allowed at the Park at any one time. This is to ensure that the proper physical distancing guidelines are safely managed.

The UDC invites members of the public to invest in Harmony Beach Park by way of the business opportunities that are currently available. Request for Proposals to design, build and operate commercial spaces at the Park have been put to the market and information on this may be sourced via the UDC’s website. The Corporation welcomes food and beverage operators, retail shopping and entertainment activities for these areas.