Hurricane Melissa was extremely powerful: the strongest ever to make landfall in Jamaica. Despite preparations, when it made landfall there were deaths and many injuries: buildings and houses were damaged and destroyed, infrastructure collapsed and utilities failed. As the storm passed over, new and different effects compounded the crisis: psychosocial impacts, the loss of livelihoods, and an outbreak of leptospirosis leading to more deaths. The consequences are still felt by households throughout the west of the country to the current day.

Several months on, as relief is still being rolled out, the Jamaica Red Cross has developed a strategy for recovery for the affected communities – a strategy that will ensure that next time a major hurricane hits, both the communities and the Red Cross itself will be stronger, more resilient and better able to cope.