Jamaica Devastated

Querido amigo,

Hurricane Melissa hammered Jamaica packing winds of 185 mph. The western side of the island was hit hard, with terrible damage to homes, businesses, hospitals, and schools. Power lines are down, and bridges and roads are blocked. Many families are still suffering after this storm, one of the strongest to ever hit the Atlantic.

Our teams began preparing before the hurricane even made landfall, and we've acted quickly to bring life-saving relief in Jesus' Name. Within 48 hours, we began a series of relief flights that have brought in shelter materials, hygiene kits, solar lights, medical supplies, household water filters, and more. As I write this, our seven airlifts have delivered nearly 400,000 pounds of relief.

We're working with dozens of churches to bring critical relief to storm survivors. "We are distributing these supplies to the most needy people. Samaritan's Purse has come just in time," said one local pastor. "These past few days have been horrific. Our church people and community folks are distraught. They are in a state they've never been in before."

We airlifted our Emergency Field Hospital on Nov. 2 and opened it three days later in the coastal town of Black River. Located in the southwest of the island—where Melissa made landfall—the already impoverished area was gutted by extreme winds and 13 feet of storm surge. The local hospital was destroyed, and virtually every building in the town sustained some level of damage.

Our hospital has more than 30 inpatient beds, with staff and equipment to run an operating room, intensive care unit, and an emergency room. We have an obstetric ward to provide maternal and neonatal care. There's also a pharmacy, lab, and blood bank on‑site.

Our first patient was 83-year-old Lasbourne. Hurricane Melissa demolished his house, and he has nowhere to live. He came through the doors of our hospital seeking treatment and left all smiles, overflowing with gratitude, and covered in prayer.

"I've seen nothing like this in my life. It made me tremble," he said. "Everywhere around the town that I look, everywhere is a wreck."

Happy with the care he received, he told our team, "If I see anybody that needs help or is sick, I'll send them right up here to the hospital! I'll tell them we have some nice, lovely people down here, come and see them."

Black River is known as "ground zero" for this storm, and it was the first location where we set up one of our community water systems, which can serve up to 10,000 people per day. When we first arrived there a resident told us, "No one has helped us yet." Another said, "We are in need of everything."

Andrea was among the first in line at our water station. "We've gone through hurricanes but not like this. This is the worst ever," she said. "I am happy to know that God is still helping us and that He is sending out His servants to help us. God bless you! I am so happy to have clean water."

Across the rugged mountains of the interior, roads are strewn with fallen power lines and blocked by boulders and trees. We are using our helicopters to transport our mobile medical teams to inaccessible areas so we can care for those with no other hope of treatment. Doctors are seeing broken bones and terribly infected wounds that have not been addressed since the hurricane hit. Between these mobile units and our Emergency Field Hospital, we've already treated more than 500 patients.

"I've seen nothing like this in my life. It made me tremble."

Our hearts are broken for the hurting people of Jamaica. "This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles" (Psalm 34:6).

We will be working on the island for some time, bringing help and comfort and sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Please pray for those affected by Hurricane Melissa and for our teams as they serve in Jesus' Name. Thank you and may God bless you.

Cordialmente,
Franklin Graham

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