OLD HARBOUR, St Catherine – Yesterday, the Old Harbour High School was empty; all those who had sought refuge there as Hurricane Emily threatened on Saturday had returned home.

Those who live in flood-prone St Catherine communities, who had refused to leave their homes on Friday, had eventually taken the rising waters seriously enough to head for the safety of the school building. It was the central point for persons seeking shelter in the parish.

On Saturday, Wycliffe Frater, the chairman of the Old Harbour Zonal District Committee, was busy tending to the needs of those who had flocked to the school auditorium.

“We are catering to residents from several communities in the parish. The majority came in this morning, but we are still seeing persons come in, and if the rains continue we expect others to come in (later Saturday) evening.”

His worry, though, was that there was a limited supply of bedding and there was an increasing demand as more persons sought shelter.

“We received a limited amount of bedding (20 mattresses), all of which are in use,” he said. “As you can see, people are coming in, and though we hope they can return to their homes soon, if the demand rises it could get a bit tricky.”

At 4:00 pm, nearly 140 persons were registered, which included 51 adults and 82 children. They were confined to the school auditorium, for easier control and security, Frater said.

However, relatives in nearby communities not affected by the storm had come to visit those seeking shelter, causing a steady flow of traffic in and out of the centre.

When the Observer news team arrived on Saturday, residents were being fed crackers and mackerel. They washed it down with “syrup”.

Some individuals had brought mattresses and basic food supplies while others came empty-handed.

Children of all ages ran around the auditorium, seemingly oblivious to the sound of heavy rains pelting the zinc roof as Emily’s outer bands hovered overhead.

The shelter was a mosaic of emotions.

Mothers nursed their babies, others played games with their and others’ children. The storm brought out the protective side of many mothers, one of whom said as she gestured towards her three daughters, “I don’t know what I would do (if anything ever happened to them).”

The three girls smiled proudly.

Nearby, a man sat with his young niece clutched in his arms while his sister made sure her toddler ate.

Teenagers chatted and laughed on cell phones, some women prayed, while the eyes of some of the males roved over nearby females.

And the people kept coming. As they arrived, some from Bushy Park spoke of rising waters.

Medical personnel were on hand to offer first aid, and Frater said a diabetic was waiting to be transported to hospital.

The Old Harbour Police, along with the school’s cadet corps, were on hand to provide security; and already police had removed one unruly individual.

But centre officials said the general behaviour was very good.

Earlier in the day on Saturday, in the Old Harbour Bay community, the police said some residents had defied warnings to seek shelter.

A policeman at the station said there were no reports of individuals in danger, but he said they were on hand to help where necessary.

Waves were heavy and dangerously close to domestic and commercial buildings in the area, but fishermen had taken their boats ashore.

By late evening, however, they had begun to seek shelter at the Old Harbour High School.

Meanwhile, heavy winds and rains in the vicinity of the Windsor Heights community caused several sheets of zinc to be lifted from the Ashtrom building, along the Mandela Highway.