STILL grappling with the effects of Hurricane Beryl more than two weeks later, farmers in south St Elizabeth are praying and hoping that the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season will not be as active as predicted.

On a trip to the breadbasket parish, some farmers in the south were seen by the
Jamaica Observer tending to their fields, searching through spoiled produce to find anything they could salvage and sell.

Among them was Damine Williamson, a farmer for more than 50 years, who was digging to retrieve some carrots — the only crop he said survived the harsh winds and flooding brought on by the hurricane. In front of him, a field was scattered with spoiled tomatoes, which he estimated amounted to a $300,000 loss.

“Is a lot of money spend. Oh gosh man, it’s rough man, but a suh it go in life; we can’t do any better. We a guh have losses. It’s a lucky thing I did buy some carrot, because carrot can’t lose — they are different than the tomatoes,” he said, staring at the field of damaged tomatoes, some of which had begun to become mouldy.

Williamson shared that he spent the duration of the hurricane thinking about his crops, and felt defeated when he came out the morning after the hurricane to find out that his tomatoes did not make it.

“I wouldn’t like to see one more [hurricane]. I don’t want to see nothing like this again. Nobody wouldn’t want to see it again because the house top blow off and the garden blow off; so is everything that was on you one time. We don’t want back this the rest of the season, no man. Nobody can’t manage another one right now,” he said, shaking his head at the thought of an active hurricane season.

Regional forecasters in May this year predicted a hyperactive season with up to 29 named storms, 13 of which they said are likely to become hurricanes, including seven major hurricanes.

However Arthur Ebanks, a watermelon, tomato, and cantaloupe farmer in Flagaman, St Elizabeth, who was on his way to replant some seedlings when he was spotted by the
Sunday Observer, said he is hoping this will not be the case.

“We are very concerned about this season because, if you notice, [with] almost every hurricane the south gets the worst all the time, because from it develop and it come across, we get the most here,” he said, adding that the farmers cannot take another drop of rain.

“I wouldn’t like it if even the breeze blow too hard. I wish it could remain calm. Let us take the heat, but we cannot manage another hurricane. It is very devastating as you look around. Everything blow down. Not even [the] mango tree [survive] for us to get two mangoes to eat. It’s a hard blow for us,” he lamented, sharing that most of his watermelons and tomatoes planted before the hurricane were wiped out.

“Never before have I seen something like this — and the only one I missed was in 1951 [Hurricane Charlie] when I was just born. I go through all of them here, and there was nothing like this,” he said,

Staring into the distance, Ebanks assessed the damage to houses and farms nearby, confirming his earlier comments that this was the worst he has ever witnessed in his beloved parish.

Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining Floyd Green said in a statement in Parliament last week Tuesday that the estimated loss in the agriculture sector amounted to $4.7 billion, with more than 48,000 farmers affected. He added that more than 323,000 animals and 18,700 hectares of vegetables, valued at approximately $1.95 billion, were lost during the hurricane.

The minister said help is on the way for farmers whose crops were ravaged by Hurricane Beryl, with $700 million allocated to provide various forms of short-term assistance.

“This initial tranche will be used to purchase critical items urgently needed and will be disbursed through RADA (Rural Agricultural Development Authority), NIC (National Irrigation Commission), AIC (Agro-Invest Corporation), and JAS (Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS),” he said.

Green further noted that the allocation includes $65 million in seeds that were procured for farmers in preparation for the season.

However, despite their knowledge about the active season some farmers said they have no plans in place if another hurricane sets its sights on Jamaica.

“I don’t know what I would do. Is just the pepper I have leave right now so I’m just going to look after the pepper and see what I can get from it. Me can’t think about that right now,” tomato and pepper farmer Errol Edwards told the Observer.

“If we get a next one we just have to face it like how we face the last one. I don’t know,” said Matthew Samuels, a farmer in the Flagaman community, when asked about his hurricane plan for his farm.

Meanwhile, Williamson said he lived through Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and is used to his produce getting damaged during the season or heavy rains. His plan, he said, is to face the loss if it comes and replant.

“A suh it go, a just life,” he said.