Jamaican Families Desperate to Reconnect After Devastating Hurricane Melissa

On October 30, 2025, New York chef Kemoy Gordon last spoke to his family in Jamaica on Monday, as they prepared to evacuate their beachside home ahead of Hurricane Melissa. Since then, Gordon has been unable to reach them, as the phone lines and electricity are down in the affected areas.

Gordon is one of the roughly 218,000 New York City residents with Jamaican roots who are deeply concerned about the fate of their friends and family back home. Hurricane Melissa, with sustained winds of 185 mph, made landfall in Jamaica earlier this week, causing extensive damage to homes, infrastructure, and the environment.

Drone footage from the southwestern region of the island, where Gordon's family lives, reveals the devastating impact of the storm. Swaths of land are submerged in muddy water, and many homes have lost their roofs, with the interiors visible through the damage. Roads are partially submerged, and fallen palm trees litter the landscape.

In the aftermath of the hurricane, international relief efforts are slowly coming together. The Caribbean Disaster Relief and Recovery Alliance has mobilized a shipping service to collect and deliver essential supplies, while the New York-based nonprofit American Friends of Jamaica has raised nearly $290,000 to support relief efforts and created a $1 million matching fund.

As the full extent of the damage becomes clearer, Jamaican-Americans like Kemoy Gordon are eager to turn their feelings of helplessness into action, hoping to provide much-needed assistance to their loved ones and communities back home.