Member of Parliament for Westmoreland Eastern, Dr Dayton Campbell, says almost 50 per cent of Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) customers in the constituency are still without electricity more than six months after Hurricane Melissa.
Citing statistics from the energy company, Campbell said electricity has not been restored for 3,839 of the 7,912 JPS customers in eastern Westmoreland since the powerful Category Five storm made landfall in the parish on October 28 last year.
He was speaking at a press conference hosted by the main opposition People’s National Party (PNP) to raise concerns about the scope and pace of Jamaica’s recovery efforts.
Campbell said that in two communities—Darliston and Bethel Town—electricity is being supplied to customers by a generator.
“We are far away from where we should be. I think more can be done,” the Westmoreland Eastern MP said.
In Westmoreland Central, MP Dwayne Vaz acknowledged that electricity has been restored for most JPS customers but said there are communities where “some sections have light and some don’t.”
One of the more urgent issues in the constituency that needs to be addressed, Vaz said, is the relocation of residents who are still in shelters.
He indicated, for example, that there are 41 residents, including 12 children, still sheltering at Petersfield High School.
“The major issue they are having is communication because the fact is the Government has made so many promises to them since the passage of the hurricane that have not been fulfilled to date,” Vaz said.
He said the last assurance from the Government was that by May 8 the residents would be relocated to suitable accommodation.
However, the MP said he has not seen “much work” being done in the area that was identified.
“So I am wondering if this May 8 deadline is actually realistic,” he said.
“They [residents in the shelters] are disheartened because every time they hear something, it has not come through. So we are really hoping that this May 8 deadline doesn’t pass.”
Andrea Purkiss, MP for Hanover Eastern, disclosed that 19 people are still in shelters in the constituency.
She expressed concern that with the start of the 2026 hurricane season less than two months away, 90 per cent of the shelters across the constituency are still damaged.
The season runs from June 1 to November 30.
– Livern Barrett
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