António Guterres spoke by phone to Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness earlier in the day emphasising afterwards in a statement that “international support is crucial” as the country deals with the effects of the category 5 storm which brought rain, storm surges and catastrophic flooding.
“He calls for the mobilisation of massive resources to deal with the loss and damage from the hurricane,” said the Deputy UN Spokesperson.
The UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, has allocated $4 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) so agencies and their partners can rapidly scale up humanitarian operations in Jamaica.
Five days after the most powerful storm in the island's history made landfall in the west, many residents are still waiting for aid to arrive, according to local news reports, with many roads still inaccessible and communities without power and running water.
