For some Jamaicans, more especially those located on or close to the island’s south coast, the awful impact of Hurricane Beryl is still being felt.

The visual evidence of the storm which sideswiped the country at Category Four strength remains in some places.

Such is the rapid passage of time that we are now just over a month away from the first anniversary of Beryl’s impact on July 3 last year.

Having formed in the Atlantic in late June, the storm made landfall in Grenada, eastern Caribbean, on July 1, causing utter devastation.

It gathered strength over the Caribbean Sea thereafter, barrelling towards Jamaica with Category Five strength before weakening to Category Four as it passed just south.

We dare not forget that there were at least three deaths and damage estimated by the authorities at in excess of $32 billion.

Numerous homes, schools, and other infrastructure were destroyed or damaged. Farmers took a huge hit.

Service by electricity provider Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) was seriously undermined. Entire communities were left without electricity for well in excess of two months in some cases.

It seems very evident that Jamaica — and possibly the entire region — was woefully underprepared for Beryl. Meteorologists say it was the strongest-ever storm recorded to have entered the Caribbean so early in a hurricane season. Experts explain that climate change has rendered weather systems, including tropical cyclones, increasingly unpredictable and erratic.

For those reasons we are pleased that there seems to be a determined effort to be ready for whatever comes in the 2025 season, which officially begins this Sunday, June 1.

For example, in April the JPS led a multi-agency hurricane simulation exercise, uniting JPS, Flow, Digicel, National Water Commission (NWC), National Works Agency (NWA), and the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) to test and strengthen emergency response coordination.

More such drills were reportedly planned, and presumably have been implemented.

JPS head Mr Hugh Grant deserves applause for arguing, “Exercises like these are vital because they allow us to strengthen our coordination and identify any gaps before we’re in a real crisis. Each of our organisations is inextricably linked to the other in serving the Jamaican people, and our ability to recover quickly depends on how well we work together…”

Last week we heard from minister with responsibility for works Mr Robert Morgan that Government will be spending approximately $832 million on critical mitigation work across the island, up from $102 million allocated for similar activities in 2024.

“Based on what we went through, with [Hurricane] Beryl last July, we are not taking any chances. We’re preparing early and acting fast,” Mr Morgan told Parliament.

“We [Government] do not consider this hurricane season business as usual…” he added. Indeed, everyone should recognise that it can’t be business as usual.

As Ms Elizabeth Riley, head of Barbados-based Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), pointed out this week, it is important for not just governments and agencies, but all of us “as individuals to take responsibility for our personal preparedness and preparedness for our own families”.

Jamaicans and their regional neighbours should take that advice as gospel.