Jamaican community in Ottawa strives to support hurricane relief efforts

Ottawa·NewOttawa’s Jamaican community is banding together to support relief efforts for the Carribbean island nation after it was devastated by Hurricane Melissa.High commissioner calls Hurricane Melissa’s impact devastatingGabrielle Huston · CBC News · Posted: Nov 01, 2025 4:00 PM EDT | Last Updated: 30 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 5 minutesRelief efforts have begun in Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa made landfall on Tuesday. In Ottawa, members of the local Jamaican community say they’re ready to do what they can to help their storm-battered homeland. (Octavio Jones/Reuters)Kamoi McWhinney has had a long week.As a Jamaican Canadian dual citizen living in Ottawa, she’s been anxiously watching the development and aftermath of Hurricane Melissa. Last Saturday, it was just a tropical storm. By Monday, it had been designated a Category 5 hurricane. Then on Wednesday it struck Jamaica, knocking out power to much of the island and leaving devastation in its wake.McWhinney says she’s been communicating with her family almost non-stop — except when the electricity or the signal gives out. “It’s one thing in the moment, when the hurricane is coming and there’s a lot of fear and … a lot of adrenaline to get through the storm and make sure everyone is good,” she said.”But now that the storm has passed — and you look around and you see how much it’s going to take really to recover — there is a heaviness.”In Ottawa, the Jamaican community has been trying to support the island’s ongoing relief efforts. McWhinney said she has faith Jamaica can recover, but the images of devastation can be “overwhelming.” “You really do have to take this step back and … do what you can, pray where you cannot, and just trust that over time Jamaica will [get to] a place that’s better,” she said.Kamoi McWhinney with her grandfather, who still lives in Jamaica. McWhinney said he was all right after Hurricane Melissa landed on Tuesday. (Photo provided by Kamoi McWhinney)Impact is inescapableMcWhinney said she’s not sure Canadians realize the “gravity” of the situation in Jamaica.”Trying to equate it to something like Hurricane Katrina’s only just the tip of it,” she said, noting that critical parts of the country’s infrastructure will need to be rebuilt from the ground up. The storm’s impact has been inescapable, said Marsha Coore Lobban, the high commissioner of Jamaica to Canada, speaking on CBC Radio’s All In A Day.”The trees are down. Communication lines, utility lines have been damaged. [The hurricane] destroyed roads, bridges have [been] cut away,” she explained. “So some persons are completely isolated right now.”An aerial view of Black River, Jamaica, on Oct. 30 in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa. (Matias Delacroix/The Associated Press)The western side of the island was hit the hardest, Coore Lobban said. That’s where some of McWhinney’s family is, but she said everyone is safe. Coore Lobban said the capital Kingston had serious weather but was “spared the brunt” of the storm.That’s where R.J. McEwans’s family is living. McEwans is the suffragan bishop at the REACH centre in Ottawa. Now that the storm has passed, he said his family will support the recovery efforts in other parts of the island.Waves splash in the Jamaican capital of Kingston as Hurricane Melissa approaches on Tuesday, Oct. 28. (Matias Delacroix/The Associated Press)”What I do know about our people is that we’re very resilient,” McEwans said. “[Before the storm hit] there was probably so many memes and so many jokes that were happening because they know we can’t change the weather pattern. We can’t control it, but we can control ourselves.” And back in Ottawa, McEwans said the REACH centre has parishoners from across the world that want to find ways to help.Diaspora ‘fully mobilized’McWhinney is headed back to the island herself in the coming days. She planned the trip before the hurricane formed, and said now it’s a good opportunity to bring supplies, check in on her family and pitch in.And it’s not just McWhinney and McEwans trying to support Jamaica, said Coore Lobban.”The [Jamaican] diaspora across the globe … is fully mobilized,” she said. “They have reached out nonstop to just show their solidarity and support.”Jamaica has also been receiving international help. Canada pledged Thursday to send $7 million in relief funds to it and other Caribbean countries affected by the storm.”We believe that we will be able to recover,” Coore Lobban said. “We will recover and rebuild, so we are grateful for [Canada’s] announcement. And I know it will go a far way.” A Black River Hospital staff member carries a box with supplies on Oct. 30, 2025, after Hurricane Melissa made landfall. (Octavio Jones/Reuters)McWhinney agreed that the money is helpful and important, but described it as a “hands-off approach.” “The donations and all of that is incredible, but there’s a relationship that can only be maintained if Jamaica has the infrastructure and ability to maintain it. And so as [Canada’s] key partner, it’s [about] putting things in place to ensure that that remains.” she said.She cited Newfoundland Screech as an example of that relationship. It’s a Jamaican rum that is bottled and sold in Newfoundland, then used as part of the tradition called “screeching-in.””Jamaica and Canada are far more intertwined than I think people think it is.”LISTEN | Recovery, relief efforts underway in Jamaica:11:48Relief efforts for hurricane-stricken JamaicaKate speaks to Jamaica’s high commissioner to Canada, Marsha Coore-Lobban, about relief efforts underway here.ABOUT THE AUTHORGabrielle is an Ottawa-based journalist with eclectic interests. She’s spoken to video game developers, city councillors, neuroscientists and small business owners alike. Reach out to her for any reason at gabrielle.huston@cbc.ca.Follow Gabrielle on BlueskyFollow Gabrielle on Instagram