Independence Park General Manager Major Desmon Brown has confirmed that Jamaica’s National Stadium sustained minimal damage during the passage of Hurricane Melissa.

The record-breaking Category 5 hurricane swept across the island on Tuesday, devastating several communities and severely impacting infrastructure nationwide. However, Brown says only minor damage was observed at the National Stadium following an initial assessment.

“We are still in the process of doing a detailed review,” he said. “But so far a couple of windows have been broken in the National Stadium.”

Brown says that the facility’s water system has been affected.

“Our well pump is not working, not too sure why, but that’s it,” he said.

Brown says the National Arena, which served as a hurricane shelter during the storm, has since been vacated.

“All the persons who were in the National Arena have now left. We had between 113 and 166 persons in the shelter,” Brown confirmed.

The US National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Melissa made landfall on Jamaica’s south-west coast with sustained winds of up to 185 miles per hour (295 kilometres per hour). The system tore through several western parishes, leaving widespread destruction and disruption in its wake.

Brown, who also manages the Trelawny Stadium, says communication challenges have made it difficult to assess damage at that facility.

“We haven’t been able to get through to Trelawny Stadium, that’s my concern at the moment,” he explained. “The last time I spoke [to them] was just before it [Melissa] hit land, but I haven’t been able to get through to anyone since.”

Brown is relieved that the National Stadium appears to have withstood the hurricane’s impact, saying that the field does not seem to have suffered significant damage, a crucial factor as Jamaica prepares to host its final World Cup qualifier against Curaçao on November 18.