News

Ken Chee Hing

5 Hrs Ago

MELISSA’S LEGACY: An aerial photo shows the devastation Hurricane Melissa left behind in Jamaica. – Photo courtesy Andrew Holness

FURNESS Shipping & Marketing Limited, the food distribution arm of the Furness Trinidad Group, has loaded much needed canned food items comprising corn, peas, peas and carrots, red beans and chick peas to be sent to Jamaica which was devastated by monster Category 5 Hurricane on October 28.

A release said this assistance was being given as the Group recognised the complete disaster Melissa wrought on Jamaica and her people.

Group chairman and CEO William A Ferreira, expressed solidarity with “our Jamaican brothers and sisters” and his profound sorrow over the loss of life and destruction left in Melissa’s wake.

WITH LOVE: Disaster relief items from the Furness Group are seen in a truck. The items were destined for Jamaica which was struck by Category 5 Hurricane Melissa on October 28. – Photo courtesy Furness Group

He declared that Jamaica is stronger than any hurricane and this was just a chapter and not the entire story. Ferreira reminded all that after every storm, the sun must and will shine again, “and so will the beautiful people of Jamaica.”

He continued, “There’s an old saying that new beginnings are often disguised as painful endings, which means that in moments of uncertainty and despair, like this unfortunate and destructive hurricane, the people of Jamaica can be a catalyst for new growth, energy, and possibilities.”

Ferreira thanked his team at the Furness group and the various warehouse and delivery staff who worked tirelessly to make this venture happen especially given the very tight shipping schedule established.

Furness Group Chairman and CEO William A Ferreira. – File Photo

Hurricane Melissa was described as the “storm of the century” as she was the strongest storm since records began being kept to make landfall in Jamaica.

The storm slammed into the southwestern coast of Jamaica at midday on October 28 at a maximum Category 5 storm before hitting Cuba, the Bahamas and later, Bermuda.

As of October 30, the scale of devastation left by Melissa was becoming clear after the record-setting storm tore through Jamaica, Haiti and Cuba, leaving at least 34 people dead.

This is the strongest storm to strike in the Caribbean in modern history, with sustained winds of 298km/h (185 mph) at its peak – stronger than Hurricane Katrina which devastated New Orleans in 2005, killing 1,392 people.