KINGSTON, Jamaica — A state of public emergency (SOE) has been declared within specified boundaries encompassing parts of the Kingston Central, Kingston Western and St Andrew South Police Divisions.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness made the announcement a short while ago at a press conference at the Office of the Prime minister.

The state of emergency, which took effect today, will last initially for 14 days,

Holness said: “The Government considers it necessary to use the extraordinary powers provided for within the state of public emergency to address long standing crime and public order issues, which have threatened lives, indeed taken lives, curtailed businesses, undermined the rule of law and deprived citizens their general right to live peacefully and enjoy a good quality of life.”

The boundaries of the SOE are as follows:

From the north:

The starting point is the intersection of Oakland Road and Spanish Town Road, which extends north-easterly along Oakland Road; south-easterly along Waltham Park Road; north-easterly along Delamere Avenue; easterly along Delacree Road and Maxfield Avenue; southerly along Maxfield Avenue; easterly along Rousseau Road; southerly along Lyndhurst Road; onto Studio One Boulevard. The end point is the intersection of Studio One Boulevard and Slipe Road.

In the east:

The start point is the intersection of Studio One Boulevard and Slipe Road, which extends southerly along Slipe Road; onto Orange Street; westerly along Harbour Street; southerly on Pechon Street; and southerly on Ocean Boulevard to the shoreline in the vicinity of the Kingston Craft Market.

In the South:

The start point is the corner of Ocean Boulevard south of Kingston Crafts Market and extends north-westerly along the shoreline to the south-western corner of the PetroJam compound.

In the West:

Starting point is the south-western corner of the PetroJam compound. Boundary extends north-easterly along the western end of the PetroJam compound to a point of intersection with Marcus Garvey Drive; north-westerly along Marcus Garvey Drive to the intersection of Marcus Garvey Drive and Fourth Street; onto Third Avenue; onto Sixth Street; north-easterly along a short segment of track onto MOU’s Trail to its intersection with Spanish Town Road; north-westerly along Spanish Town Road to the start point at Oakland Road.