Minister of Labour and Social Security Pearnel Charles Jr says homeowners completely devastated by Hurricane Beryl will receive emergency grant assistance of up to J$400,000.

According to the minister, following assessments up to July 22, some 453 houses have been assessed as totally destroyed, 3,221 severely damaged and 4,723 more sustaining minor damage.

“The ministry has completed the assessment process in most parishes. However, the process is ongoing in the southern parishes of Clarendon, Manchester and St Elizabeth. Assessments in these three parishes should be completed by Wednesday, July 24, with only a few areas outstanding,” Charles Jr noted while giving an update in Parliament on yesterday afternoon.

He said the highest incidence of damage occurred in St. Elizabeth, with 1,919 households affected, followed by Clarendon, where 1,243 households have been affected.

“Clarendon experienced the highest incidence of totally destroyed houses – with 133 houses. Another 617, nearly 50 per cent of the 1,243 are severely damaged. The remaining 493 experienced minor damage. St. Elizabeth experienced the highest incidence of damage, and the highest occurrence of severely damaged houses 952 of 1,919, while 64 houses were completely destroyed of 1,919 or 3.33 per cent. The remaining 903 (48.09 per cent) experienced minor damage,” Charles Jr said.

He said homes that have been severely damaged will receive a grant of up to $150,000 and those who experienced minor damage will receive up to $50,000.

“We recognise the immediate challenges presented by using cheque payments and we are exploring options for electronic payments and cash cards to expedite these grants and improve service delivery,” Charles Jr said.

Meanwhile, the labour minister said the Food for the Poor has already replaced 20 roofs in Clarendon and has mobilised to activate similar efforts in St Elizabeth by Thursday.

Charles Jr. further indicated that as the government approaches the restoration process for households affected by the hurricane, he expects that these grants will be supplemented by a range of other initiatives, including donor funds, contributions from the Jamaican Diaspora, private sector initiatives such as the recently launched NCB Foundation’s Building a Better Jamaica Fund, Constituency Development Fund (CDF), and Food for the Poor.

Additionally, he disclosed that the ministries of labour and foreign affairs, in conjunction with the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), have been in dialogue with a number of international partners to provide assistance to persons affected by Hurricane Beryl.

“Specifically, Madam Speaker, MLSS (Ministry of Labour and Social Security) has been in discussions with the United Nations’ World Food Programme and UNICEF. So far, these talks have led to a few pledges of support,” he said.