ST ELIZABETH, Jamaica— The Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) said that it has completed the restoration of electricity to customers who lost supply during the passage of Hurricane Beryl, three days ahead of the August 31 deadline.

Hugh Grant, JPS president and chief executive officer (CEO), made the announcement on Thursday during a back-to-school treat hosted by the power company in Ginger Hill, St Elizabeth.

“We know how difficult it has been for our customers in St Elizabeth who have been without power for an extended period. That’s why we brought in all the resources available and our teams have been working around the clock these past few weeks,” Grant said in a news release.

“And today, we can say that we have successfully gotten supply back to our customers – three days ahead of the August 31 milestone that we had set and right in time for back to school. This is so important for our people,” the CEO added.

JPS said the category four storm wreaked havoc on its power delivery infrastructure causing extensive damage and, in some areas, complete destruction, especially in St Elizabeth which was hardest hit.

“While we focused on getting supply back to our customers in St Elizabeth as quickly as possible, we had to start a process of rebuilding. Sections of the network have to be completely rebuilt, and lines have to be relocated because of extremely difficult terrain. This rebuilding process will continue for a while, as we work to make the network even more resilient,” Grant explained.

The CEO added that while all the power distribution lines in St Elizabeth have been energised, there are some isolated cases of customers being without supply due to damage to their premises, or access challenges in the case of the Holland Farm NIC Pump.

“We are urging anyone who is still without supply to contact us, and we will have a team check on your situation as quickly as possible,” Grant pledged.

JPS said it received words of gratitude from Member of Parliament for St Elizabeth North Western, JC Hutchinson, who was also in attendance at the back-to-school event. The company said that Hutchinson said that he was no longer getting reports of people claiming to be without power supply.

It added that Mayor of Black River Richard Solomon also commended the light and power company, and the newly installed JPS president, who is in his fourth week on the job.

“Since the new president and CEO, Hugh Grant,we have felt his leadership and we have felt his commitment,” Solomon is quoted saying.

He also commended the residents of St Elizabeth for their resilience after being the worst affected parish in the island from Hurricane Beryl.

JPS went on to thank its stakeholders including the members of Parliament and the mayor for “their strong partnership and support, as well as the [Office of Utilities Regulation] OUR and Director General, Ansord Hewitt.

“The company also thanks Minister [Daryl] Vaz for his support and care for customers, which also aligns with the utility’s own perspectives and care for the entire customer base,” JPS said in the release.

The company also thanked the people of Jamaica for their patience, adding that it “remains committed to excellent service with the customer at the centre of all that we do”.