Business leaders in Montego Bay are pressing the Government to commission a comprehensive study of the city’s rivers and drainage system after Hurricane Melissa left billions of dollars in damage last October.
Countless businesses and homes in Westgreen and Catherine Hall were inundated, forcing costly clean-up efforts and disrupting jobs. Barnett Tech Park, a 48-acre hub for global services firms, was among the hardest hit, alongside retailers such as MegaMart and National Supply Limited.
Mark Kerr-Jarrett, executive chairman of Barnett Limited, a major land development company, said realigning the city’s waterways will require outside expertise and billions in spending. He urged the Government to enlist the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), citing the risk of repeat devastation.
“The whole drainage system of southern Montego Bay needs to be reviewed in totality, otherwise this will happen again,” Kerr-Jarrett told the Financial Gleaner. “I suggest a comprehensive stormwater and drainage study for the whole of southern Montego Bay be done to thoroughly review and investigate the cause of the flooding.”
Kerr-Jarrett, while acknowledging the work done by successive governments to develop the city over the years, is calling for outside help in realigning the rivers in Montego Bay, a project which he admits will cost billions of dollars.
The call comes as Montego Bay’s tourism sector struggles to recover. About 80 per cent of hotels have reopened, but the Bank of Jamaica projects full restoration of room stock only by the December 2026 quarter.
Gary ‘Butch’ Hendrickson, chairman of National Baking Company, said Melissa delayed the opening of a new plant by four months. “Put the business aside; the people who have homes there are very much at risk,” he said, adding that Kerr-Jarrett’s proposal deserves serious consideration.
President of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce Jason Russell said there are lessons to be learnt from Melissa that will be used as the country rebuilds for the future. The city, he added, has outgrown its core infrastructure. Russell concurred with Kerr-Jarrett’s proposal.
“We can’t try to build to stop Mother Nature. We have to just build accordingly and we learn as we move forward,” Russell said.
Russell said he expects the Government to address the long-term solution for the city amid short-term recovery.
“The first step was survival, making sure everybody was safe. Second, the physical recovery of rebounding and getting people back to some kind of normalcy,” he said.
Kerr-Jarrett, who is also an engineer, has written to several government officials and entities on the matter, including the National Works Agency, the National Environment and Planning Agency, Mayor of Montego Bay Richard Vernon and Member of Parliament Marlene Mahaloo Forte.
Established in 1775, the USACE is a key military engineering branch of the US Army provides engineering, construction, and environmental services.
It has evolved into one of the world’s largest public engineering, design, and construction management agencies, employing approximately 37,000 personnel, predominantly civilians. Its primary mission areas include military construction, civil works, and the Engineer Regiment, which encompasses various engineering specialties.
luke.douglas@gleanerjm.com
