As Jamaica faces historic destruction from Hurricane Melissa, Caribbean communities in New York confront flash flooding and fear for loved ones back home. Interviews available with Grammy-winning Musician Sean Paul, Shaggy and other advocates.
NEW YORK, NY — Within days of Hurricane Melissa’s catastrophic landfall in Jamaica, flash flooding inundated parts of New York City, including heavily Caribbean neighborhoods like Bedford-Stuyvesant, East Flatbush, and Crown Heights. Though unrelated weather systems, both disasters underscore a shared reality: extreme weather is becoming far too frequent, and it’s disproportionately impacting Black and Brown communities on the frontlines — both at home and across the diaspora.
Hurricane Melissa, now confirmed as the strongest storm in Atlantic history, formed in the Caribbean Sea on October 25 before rapidly intensifying into a Category 5 hurricane. By the time it made landfall in western Jamaica on October 27, the island was facing sustained winds of 145 mph, torrential rains, and catastrophic flooding. Communities in St. Elizabeth and Westmoreland were among the hardest hit, with landslides, blocked roads, and damage to critical facilities cutting off families from food and medical care.
At the same time, an unrelated storm system in the Northeast drenched New York City, flooding streets, homes, and subway stations in neighborhoods still recovering from previous events like Hurricane Ida. For many Caribbean Americans, the emotional toll has been twofold — watching their home country devastated while navigating another flood in their adopted home.
“Hurricane Melissa’s landmark destruction and the rise of these flash floods in New York that take human life are such a reminder that one of the fastest growing populations in the US –– and world, are people harmed by extreme weather and that these disasters are increasing in frequency and severity and we need to start talking about it,” said Chris Kocher, Co-Founder of EWS.
Extreme Weather Survivors (EWS), a national network connecting disaster survivors and first responders to media and trauma-informed resources, is mobilizing to amplify credible donation efforts supporting Jamaica’s relief and rebuilding work, provide mental health resources for survivors in both Jamaica and the U.S. Caribbean diaspora, and connect storytellers, journalists, and advocates to highlight the human cost of repeated disasters and inequitable climate impacts.
