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Fisherman Prince’s story was confirmed by updates sent on WhatsApp by friends and neighbors Davis There were already fears: Hurricane Melissa tore a hole in the stern of their 50-foot (15-meter) fishing boat, and damaged the cabin and back deck.
His father’s boat was nowhere to be found. The house Davis and her parents shared had a low ceiling Jamaica The fishing community of White House in Westmoreland Parish was also destroyed.
davis was in nicaraguaWhere he had flown shortly before the storm to find new customers for his fishing business. But now his livelihood and that of many people in his community were in danger.
“It’s going to be very difficult,” Davis said. “Now with the losses, no one will buy the product.”
About 29 kilometers (17 mi) northwest in Amity, in Westmoreland Parish, Denver Thorpe lost 15 acres (6 ha) of mango trees and two greenhouses on his farm.
“Absolutely nothing,” said Thorpe, a farmer and regional manager of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, a farmers’ advocacy organization.
Hurricane Melissa has been blamed for at least 19 deaths in Jamaica, bringing devastating winds up to 185 mph (298 kph) and storm surge that destroyed homes and public infrastructure.
While official damage assessments are still underway, experts said it is already clear that one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes ever recorded has dealt a devastating blow to thousands of Jamaican fishermen and farmers who feed their families and nearby communities.
Similar effects will be felt by some people Cuba And Haitian small producer, Lola Castro, said, world food program Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean.
“I would say every (crop) that comes along the way has been ruined, there’s no discussion on that,” Castro said. “Some of the fruit trees may be recovered, some of the floating crops will not be recovered at all.”
The destruction will impact how residents earn income and support their families at a time when they must also rebuild homes and communities. Castro said 10 million people were already food-insecure in the affected countries of Haiti, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic. WFP does not have that data for Cuba.
The devastation in Jamaica comes just 15 months after Hurricane Beryl affected more than 50,000 farmers and 11,000 fishermen, and caused $4.73 billion Jamaican dollars (about $29 million) in damages, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining.
“We were just about to turn the corner,” Thorpe said.
‘The lifeblood of the most vulnerable’
Jamaica’s Agriculture Ministry did not respond to questions about impacts to the sector, but the country has more than 200,000 farmers who tend livestock and grow bananas, melons, cocoa and more.
The food produced is for domestic consumption and export – according to the Jamaica Coffee Exporters Association, Jamaica is one of the world’s largest yam exporters and its coffee growers earn $25 million annually.
About 80% are small-scale producers, working on 2 hectares of land or less, said Donovan Campbell, geography professor and director of the western campus of the University of the West Indies.
“Small-scale fishing and small-scale farming are what most people use to make a living,” he said. “This really is a lifeline for the most vulnerable in our society.”
Farmers use the October rains to grow crops before Christmas. Before the storm, the Agriculture Ministry had urged fishermen to move their equipment out of harm’s way and farmers to move their livestock and harvest whatever crops they could.
The devastation exceeded most expectations. St. Elizabeth Parish, known as Jamaica’s “breadbasket,” was “underwater,” officials said Wednesday. According to the Jamaica Information Service, as of 2022 there were more than 35,000 registered farmers and fishermen in the parish.
For fishermen, Davis said it’s not just losing boats, traps and nets that jeopardizes their work. Without electricity, there is no ice to store what they catch, and customers will not buy what they cannot keep cold. Lack of tourism will also affect demand.
He said the recession is even worse for fishermen who use most of their catch to feed their families and sell the little extra. “That small income every day supports their home, their family, their school and their children.”
There are also particular risks for women producers, Davis and Campbell said, many of whom are heads of households who support their children from the small amount of money they sell.
Complex crisis in Cuba and Haiti
Cuba and Haiti face similar challenges, which are exacerbated by their political and economic crises.
The storm caused severe flooding in southern Haiti and was blamed for 31 deaths in the country, where hunger was already on the rise.
The World Food Programme’s Castro said the organization was concerned about the impact on some of Haiti’s women producers, from whom WFP typically buys produce to supply local schools.
“We may also need to bring in or import food from other parts of the country as it becomes available,” Castro said.
In Cuba, the evacuation of 735,000 people meant there were no known deaths in the country, but Melissa’s departure could worsen the challenges in feeding Cubans. The country is facing a serious economic crisis and spends about $2 billion annually on importing food products.
Banana, maize and cassava crops, coffee, various vegetables and trees were damaged in the five affected eastern provinces, local officials said.
Government officials said Melissa’s heavy rains had benefited dams and reservoirs, as the eastern part of the country was suffering from severe drought and water shortages.
“This is a ray of hope,” said Margarita Fernandez, executive director of the Caribbean Agroecology Institute in Vermont. CAI is raising funds to send directly to the farmers and cooperative societies there. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization also delivered seeds to Cuba ahead of the storm, a spokesman said.
Help comes in stages
Relief efforts in the northern Caribbean region are currently focused on immediate needs, as first responders and humanitarian organizations provide shelter, health care, food and clean water, and restore power and communications.
Food producers will soon need cash to compensate for lost income, replacement of equipment and animals, as well as new seed.
The Government of Jamaica maintains reserve funds for disasters, parametric insurance policies and disaster bonds. After Hurricane Beryl the government and nonprofits helped farmers and fishermen recover what they had lost.
But it may take a long time for help to reach small-scale producers, Campbell said.
With airports reopening, Davis is looking for a flight back to the White House. He needs to fix his boat and his roof, but he doesn’t know when he will be able to sell fish again.
“My concern is when will the economy return to normal, where life will go on as before,” Davis said. “Everyone is picking up the pieces.”
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Associated Press writer Andrea Rodriguez contributed reporting from Havana.