Chabad becomes a critical relief hub as Jamaica reels from Hurricane Melissa

Despite shattered windows, blown-off doors and no running water after the most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in recorded history, Chabad Jamaica’s Rabbi Raskin has told Jewish News their resilient community are “picking up aid that is arriving by plane thanks to the wonderful Hatzola of Florida and a lot of our supporters from around the world.”

The private plane carrying essential supplies took off from South Florida, carrying kosher food, medical supplies, baby formula, canned goods, flashlights, and other critical items for the devastated island.

Rabbi Raskin, his wife Chaya and their children took emergency shelter  as the tropical storm hit the Caribbean island directly on Tuesday afternoon, bringing record 185 mph winds, over 40 inches of rain and storm surges that caused massive destruction.

Chabad of Jamaica in Montego Bay has emerged as a vital lifeline, providing emergency aid, phone charging stations, shelter coordination, and relief services even as the building itself sustained severe damage.

Posting on their Facebook page on Friday, the Chabad community wrote: “Some sights were very difficult — downed power lines and trees, collapsed buildings, chaos on the roads. Our street is blocked with debris and downed treed and we need to walk on foot before we can get out. It took over an hour to get gas — very chaotic at the station. Very difficult to describe.”

They added that other sights were more positive: “people coming together to help each other. Several tourists and locals are sheltering with us, so we will have a Shabbat meal together. Our neighbours are using our diesel generator to charge their phones and contact their loved ones. We were able to clean up most of the debris around the Chabad house today – the shattered glass, downed solar panels, trees and other trash all over the place.”

With a car damaged by falling debris and roads blocked by fallen trees and electric poles, Rabbi Raskin and local volunteers have had to walk from the Chabad House to main roads to catch taxis in order to reach people who need help.

Volunteers spent Wednesday and Thursday helping neighbours and residents in Montego Bay, and with the arrival of critical aid on Friday can begin delivering that aid to some of the hardest hit regions in Jamaica.

The Raskin family visited their friends and neighbours in the local area “to make sure everyone is okay and in high spirits. People just went through two days of extreme apocalyptic weather, so they’re a little shaken up. Just saying hi to a neighbour, having a warm meal, and getting some water is what people are looking for right now. When traveling around, we met a Jewish man today who we didn’t know lived in the area. We put Tefillin on with him for the first time and said a prayer for a quick and easy recovery for Jamaica.”

To date, Chabad Jamaica has raised more than £112k for their relief campaign.

In a statement shared with his community, Rabbi Raskin said: “We have a responsibility to everyone on the island. That commitment continues even as we operate with limited electricity, no water and no internet connection.”

A shipping container filled with essential donations will depart for Jamaica next week. An atmospheric water generator—capable of producing clean drinking water from air—will be delivered in the coming days to serve communities where water infrastructure has been destroyed.

Hurricane Melissa killed at least thirty people and has devastated communities across the island. It intensified from a low-intensity tropical storm to a record-breaking Category 5 hurricane in just 36 hours—too fast for evacuation. The 185 mph winds and 40+ inches of rain left entire neighbourhoods underwater, infrastructure destroyed, and thousands without basic services.

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