Christmas is looking dark, literally and figuratively, for many Jamaicans on the western end of the island who suffered severe damage to their homes and livelihoods during Hurricane Melissa.

Several of the storm-affected residents told Observer Online that the festive season will not be the same without electricity and other critical amenities.

For Jerome Thompson and his partner, Atasha Bennett, who reside in the Burton district of Lacovia in St Elizabeth, the holiday season will be particularly difficult for their family.

Jerome Thompson and his partner, Atasha Bennett, with three of their five children in Burton district of Lacovia, St Elizabeth (Photo: Karl McLarty)

“Me house mash up. Me house top blow off. Furniture damage and a lot of debris inna the place. It [Christmas] ago rough, I don’t see [Christmas],” Thompson said.

Meanwhile, Bennett said without electricity, living conditions have become unbearable.

“The home is not there for the family [and] the place just uncomfortable,” she said.

The couple, who have five children including twin boys, appealed for building materials and cement to repair their roof and address leaks in sections of their home.

Similarly, Roy Hutchinson, a double amputee who operates a tyre shop in Rocky Hill, said the festive season will not be the same, as the lack of electricity is affecting his business.

“Business no good because me no have no current. If a man want a tyre to plug, me will plug it for them. I love my Christmas carol and not even radio me no have to listen me Christmas carol. Me no see where we have no Christmas now,” Hutchinson said.

Roy Hutchinson, a double amputee who operates a tyre shop in Rocky Hill (Photo: Karl McLarty)

Hutchinson said the lack of electricity also resulted in significant losses to his poultry operation, forcing him to give away chickens because he could not preserve the meat.

“A hundred chickens me did have inna the coop. Some dead inna the storm and me did take up some put in a wash room. I give them away. Me jerk some in a pan and we just give them to people in the community,” he said.

The poultry farmer noted that while he has since resumed rearing chickens, the cost of feed remains high and business continues to be slow.

“I’m going to have a little party here. My daughter is going to have a little party here for fundraising. I’m going to sell a little food to kind of help me, the 19th of December,” Hutchinson said.

Despite the challenges, the tyre repair specialist said he remains grateful for life and good health.

“Me only want know me still have life. I feel healthier. Me come out every day and move around. I feel better that I can move around,” he said.

Meanwhile, 64-year-old Hortense Ford, a resident of Parottee in St Elizabeth, said she is finding it difficult to cope this festive season after her home was destroyed by Hurricane Melissa in late October.

“My house is gone completely. I lose everything. A somebody house I stop. I am not coping well this Christmas because everything I lose, and I don’t have any money, and I’m not working,” an emotional Ford said.

During the storm, Hortense, her daughter, and two grandsons were forced to flee their home due to rising floodwaters, narrowly escaping serious danger. They sought refuge at her mother’s house and later with neighbours as the water from the sea flooded the area.

When Observer Online visited Ford’s residence, which once stood a two bedroom house provided to her by Food For The Poor, only the concrete foundation remained.

Ford said she does not want to rebuild on the flooded site and hopes instead to relocate to a safer piece of land closer to the roadside.

“I would like to move from there because, when the rain fall, is a lot of water and mud and mosquito. I would like to move, but I have a daughter that bought a piece of land near the roadside and she said if I get a house, I could put it on it,” she added.

Despite Parottee being known for flooding, Ford said she wanted to remain in the coastal community.