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Hurricane Melissa - Jamaica Recovery and Resources

Hurricane Melissa — the strongest storm in Jamaica’s history — has devastated communities across the island, bringing winds of up to 280 km/h, as well as torrential rains and storm surges that left homes destroyed, roads blocked, and thousands displaced. Nearly 1.9 million people are affected, with many families trapped or living in makeshift shelters as flooding and landslides continue.

This Spotlight compiles official Jamaican government resources, humanitarian tools and resources, relevant news feeds and policy documentation of relevance to hurricane response and recovery efforts.

Cover Image: Ricardo Makyn/AFP via Getty Images

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Oct 29, 2025 — Reuters - Hurricane Melissa Coverage Archive: Hurricane Melissa roared through Cuba on Wednesday

More than 700,000 people evacuated from their homes

Downgraded to Category 2 as it approaches Bahamas

Jamaica assesses damage after strongest storm ever to hit directly

Four reported dead in Jamaica, more than 20 in Haiti

Zoe Law, Vanessa Balintec, Kylie MacLellan, Oliver Griffin, Farouq Suleiman, Christina Anagnostopoulos, Heather Timmons Reuters

Nov 1, 2025 — Reuters Hurricane Melissa Impact Assessment: Hurricane Melissa slammed into Jamaica on October 28 as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, the strongest to ever make landfall on the island nation. The storm’s rapid intensification over unusually warm Caribbean waters highlights a trend scientists have long warned about, where climate change fuels more powerful and destructive weather events.

The devastation in Jamaica and neighboring islands is expected to renew calls from developing nations for financial aid from wealthier countries to cope with the escalating impacts of a warming planet.

According to data and analysis from OCHA’s Centre for Humanitarian Data and the Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX), Melissa recorded the highest estimated wind speed on land at landfall and the second-highest rainfall in Jamaica since 2000.

Arathy J Aluckal, Jitesh Chowdhury, Prasanta Kumar Dutta, Travis Hartman Reuters

UN News - Americas: United Nations news coverage of the Americas.

United Nations

Google News RSS Feed: Compiles live coverage of news articles regarding hurricane Melissa and Jamaica across the web.

Google News

MLSS Conducts Massive Post–Hurricane Melissa Relief Operations: Thousands of Families Reached Across Worst Affected Parishes, By Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS): The Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS), in collaboration with key partners– including the World Food Programme (WFP), the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), the Jamaica Red Cross, the Major Organized Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA), Food for the Poor (FFP), the Council of Voluntary Social Services (CVSS), and the Private Sector Organization of Jamaica (PSOJ)-- coordinated efforts to deliver essential relief such as food, water, shelter materials, and other emergency supplies to the hardest-hit areas. To ensure transparency and efficiency, ODPEM oversees a centralized national database created by the WFP that records all donations and shipments, facilitating organized distribution through parish disaster coordinators. MLSS will conduct household damage assessments through the Public Assistance Department.

JIS

Jamaica: Hurricane Melissa - Response Snapshot No. 1, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): Visually identifies points on the Jamaican map which are priority areas, telecommunication networks, and access routes critical for logistics and restoration of basic services. The UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) is designating US$4 million for humanitarian operations.

OCHA ReliefWeb

Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) - Regional Disaster Coordinators Map and Contact Information: Chief liaison officers of the ODPEM to Parish Disaster Committees and other local disaster risk management (DRM) structures

Provide technical advice and support to Municipal Corporations, and all local actors (public, private, civil society) in DRM

Conduit and first point of advice to access services of the ODPEM to local/parish actors

Designated DRM Specialist support to response coordination actions in parishes

Main ODPEM facilitators for implementation of programmes, projects and training at local/parish levels

ODPEM ODPEM

Shelter Map: Find Safety, Stay Informed, Stay Strong. If you’re in an area affected by the hurricane, your safety comes first. Use the shelter locator below to find the nearest safe location to you or your loved ones. Each shelter listed is verified and equipped to provide food, water, and emergency assistance.

ODPEM ODPEM

Jamaica Information Service (JIS): The Jamaica Information Service (JIS) is an executive agency of the Government of Jamaica responsible for disseminating information about government programs, projects, and services.

JIS JIS

Meteorological Service Jamaica - Daily Forecast: Provides daily local weather service for Jamaica

MET Service

Support Jamaica: Provides donation, needs, reporting and volunteer guidelines.

SupportJamaica.gov ODPEM

Nov 7, 2025 — Situation Overview,; Hurricane Melissa (Map Action): Map by the World Food Programme detailing an overview of the hurricane recovery situation such as marooned communities and surrounding infrastructure.

World Food Programme Map Action

Relief Web - Jamaica: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)

Global Hub for time-critical humanitarian information on complex emergencies and natural disasters.

United Nations OCHA

Nov 12, 2025 — Jamaica: Hurricane Melissa - Situation Report No. 4 (as of 11 November): Relief Web, sourcing the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), provides an updated report and situational overview Hurricane Melissa's impact including effects on the Jamaican people, critical areas, environmental and agricultural concerns, and overall status.

United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) https://reliefweb.int/organization/ocha

Relief Web, Response - Hurricane Melissa: Collaborative Inter-Agency page for Hurricane Melissa designed to enhance humanitarian coordination and support the predictable exchange of information at the country level.

RW Response

Overall Red alert Tropical Cyclone for MELISSA-25 - GDACS: GDACS is a cooperation framework between the UN, European Commisison, and disaster managers worldwide to improve alerts, information exchange, and coordination.

GDACS provides real-time access to web‐based disaster information systems and related coordination tools.

GDACS

Event Information Map: Compiles hurricane recovery efforts across different organizations and visualizes it geospatially.

GDACS

Nov 3, 2025 — World Food Group Contact Information: As the full extent of Hurricane Melissa’s destruction emerges, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is intensifying relief efforts in the hardest-hit areas to support local authorities.

World Food Group

Sep 29, 2025 — U.S. Foreign Assistance Overview: Overview of U.S. foreign assistant provided to Jamaica in 2025 (to include list of organizations).

U.S. Department of State

Oct 30, 2025 — IFRC Hurricane Melissa - Emergency Appeal: The Jamaica Red Cross, supported by the IFRC, is providing emergency shelter, food, clean water, and cash assistance. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is the world’s largest humanitarian network.

IFRC

Oct 31, 2025 — Hurricane Melissa Coordination Call Recap: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is working with the U.S. State Department to coordinate a high-level response to “mobilize support for Jamaica.” Provides statistics on how much of the island is without electricity, areas under water, airports status, etc. Highlights U.S. government, regional, and international coordination efforts as well as private sector engagement.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Nov 2, 2025 — Jamaica: Hurricane Melissa Coordination Structure - Alignment of Emergency Inter-Agency Sectors and Government: Table outlining emergency inter-agency sectors and government working to address the effects of Hurricane Melissa. Includes which Jamaican agency/ministry is involved in addressing each sector (i.e. health, early recovery, logistics and emergency telecoms, etc.). Also, the names and contact information for the Jamaican sector lead and regional sector lead.

CDEMA, OCHA ReliefWeb

Jun 25, 2025 — Jamaica’s Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management Act: Jamaica continues to operate under the Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management Act of 1993, which establishes the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management and its responsibilities (including policies, programs, and training for preparedness and mitigation measures). Also details the development of the National Disaster Plan and cohesion among each related Ministry within its purview.

OAS

May 1, 1997 — National Disaster Action Plan for Jamaica: Jamaica’s National Disaster Plan, led by the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), establishes a coordinated framework for preventing, preparing for, responding to, and recovering from natural and human-made disasters. Grounded in the Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management Act of 1993, it outlines roles across government, military, private, and civil society actors within the National Emergency Organization. The plan emphasizes mitigation, public education, early warning, and transparent coordination through national, regional, and parish structures. It details procedures for hazard assessment, emergency operations, relief distribution, and recovery efforts to ensure resilience and accountability across all phases of disaster management.

PreventionWeb

Oct 31, 2025 — World Bank Group Statement on Support for Jamaica: The World Bank Group states a “broad package” is ready to be expended- “combining quick-disbursing emergency finance, likely payout in connection with a World Bank catastrophe bond, the redeployment of existing project funds, and targeted private-sector support through the International Finance Corporation, the WBG’s private sector arm.” Additionally, the World Bank Group’s teams can provide technical advice and implementation to help Jamaica regroup and rebuild to be more resilient.

World Bank Group