FALMOUTH, Trelawny — When disaster threatened in the past, frail residents of Trelawny Infirmary would be uprooted from the place they call home and carefully placed in a shelter at Hague Primary and Infant School. Falmouth Mayor C Junior Gager is happy those days are behind them.

The old infirmary can no longer be used as it was badly damaged by last October’s Hurricane Melissa; a new building is almost completed.

“It is a big relief! The residents will now feel at home when we move them into this new facility, because they sort of take it hard when you move them from their surroundings that they are comfortable in and take them to a new area. We would have the problem of taking up everything — removing the beds, taking them up to Hague. Now they will be in one place where they will feel comfortable and more relaxed, so it’s a big burden off us,” Gager said.

The new facility, which features retrofitted modular container units, is expected to accommodate about 60 residents and 40 staff members. Though he was unable to provide a date for when it will be ready for use, and the hurricane season begins on June 1, the mayor stressed that the temporary location has clear advantages over the old infirmary.

“Elleston Wakeland Centre… is much better, much stronger and safer. And it isn’t [in] an area that is flood-prone… that you would have the sea coming up on. I don’t know why we didn’t think of that over the years but it is much better,” he pointed out.

As Gager contemplates what the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season — which runs from June 1 to the end of November — will bring, he spoke of lessons learned from last year’s Category 5 storm which left widespread devastation across sections of the parish. Among the major changes being considered by the Trelawny Municipal Corporation, which Gager heads, is the increased use of community centres as shelters. The mayor disclosed that once Elleston Wakeland Community Centre is no longer being used to house infirmary residents, it could become one of the parish’s designated shelters. He also pointed to similar facilities in Troy and Dromilly as possible additions to the pool of shelters. The new venues are vital as, according to Gager, some basic schools have indicated that they will no longer be available to be used in times of disaster. Adjoining primary or all-age school sections on the same compounds will continue to be utilised, however.

Overall, the mayor is confident in the preparations being made in his parish. He said shelter assessments are now advanced, with municipal teams visiting facilities across the parish to ensure readiness.

“We have been through nearly all the shelters. We have found that generally all shelters are okay [though] there might be a few problems when it comes to just a small percentage,” Gager stated.

He also noted that training sessions for shelter managers are ongoing.

“We’ll have a few changes too. For some of them, they don’t want to go back so we are putting in some new shelter managers,” Gager said.

“New training exercises are being done. New accommodations are ready, so we should say that we are actually there,” he added.

A big part of preparing for hurricane season is the cleaning of drains. Gager told the Sunday Observer that Falmouth is also in good standing where that is concerned. He said drain-cleaning activities have intensified across the parish as councillors continue mitigation work in vulnerable communities.

“Each councillor concentrated on drains over the weekend,” he assured.

And he repeated the often-issued directive for residents living in flood-prone and low-lying areas to heed evacuation warnings and move to safer locations before storms threaten.

“I would say to all residents: ‘Take all warnings seriously and act upon it in due time. Don’t wait until a hurricane is there before you move from the flood-prone areas,’ ” Gager cautioned.

“Because it is serious and we don’t know what will be coming, we don’t know, so we must be prepared — and that’s what we are doing,” the mayor added.

The battered Trelawny Infirmary in Falmouth in the aftermath of last October’s Hurricane Melissa.

GAGER…it’s a big burden off us