IsraAID, Israel’s leading independent humanitarian organization, launched an emergency response on Thursday, after Category 5 Hurricane Melissa battered Jamaica.
The storm is the strongest to ever make landfall in Jamaica, and the second strongest recorded in the region, with effects felt across Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.
IsraAID’s initial emergency response team will arrive in Jamaica over the weekend, focusing on providing support in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene, as well as Mental Health and Psychosocial Support.
On Tuesday, Hurricane Melissa made landfall as a Category 5 storm in Black River, Saint Elizabeth Parish, southwest Jamaica - a region that was still recovering from 2024’s Hurricane Beryl. Sustained winds of 185mph (295 km/h), torrential rainfall, and a 10 ft (3m) storm surge caused extensive damage as the storm moved northward, clearing Jamaica’s coast on Wednesday. The storm caused extensive flooding and damage in Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.
In Jamaica, 5 people have been reported dead, and another 20 have been killed in Haiti, though the full extent of the damage is still unclear. Early reports show extensive flooding, destruction of homes, damaged infrastructure, and an ongoing risk of landslides. As of Thursday, the storm had weakened to Category 1 and was heading toward Bermuda.
IsraAID’s team is composed of experts in emergency response, logistics, operations, Mental Health and Psychososocial Support, and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene. Leveraging the organization’s regional presence and expertise, the team also includes specialists from IsraAID offices in Dominica and Colombia alongside members of the Global Emergency Operations team. In the first days, the team will assess urgent needs, and focus on supporting access to safe water, hygiene and sanitation supplies, and child protection services.
IsraAID Dominica was first established following Hurricane Maria and has since become a regional actor focused on disaster preparedness and recovery across the Caribbean. The organization has responded to repeated hurricanes in the region including Hurricane Beryl in 2024, Hurricane Ian in 2022, Hurricane Dorian in 2019, and Hurricane Maria in 2017, developing extensive expertise in both immediate and long-term recovery.
IsraAID’s Senior Director of Emergency Operations Michal Bar, said: “The damage we’re seeing from Hurricane Melissa is devastating, and IsraAID is committed to standing with affected communities at this critical moment. Communities in southwest Jamaica were severely impacted by Hurricane Beryl just last year and are now experiencing destruction on a whole new scale. The full extent of the damage and the urgent needs will become clear in the coming days, but we can already see the historic scale of this storm.”
“IsraAID is proud to be able to build on our regional presence and expertise to launch an urgent response. Our teams in Dominica and Colombia are deeply familiar with the context and the region, and bring technical expertise in psychosocial support, water, sanitation, and hygiene. As with our previous responses in the region, we’ll stand with communities for as long as they need us.”