Belizean Students Face New Normal in Jamaica

Belizean students in Jamaica are proving their resilience. Just one week after surviving the catastrophic Category Five Hurricane Melissa, they’re back in online classes. When we last spoke with them, these scholars were scrambling for supplies and bracing for impact. Thankfully, all Belizeans are safe and accounted for. But now, the challenge has shifted, how do you adapt to a new normal when your campus is in recovery mode? Shane Williams takes us inside their journey, how they’re coping, and the support they still need.

 

Shane Williams, Reporting

When Hurricane Melissa roared through Jamaica as a Category Five storm, Belizean students braced for the worst. A week later, they’re safe, accounted for, and slowly returning to normal. Bernard Pitts is President of the Belizean Student Association of Jamaica. He was packaging food supplies for Belizean students when he spoke with us today.

 

Bernard Pitts, President BELSAJ 

“ I think on the most part they are settling back in. They are pretty much Okay. To add to that, we’re glad for the relief that the government has sent for us. We’ve had a total of about seventy-five to a hundred packages on which we have processed already and we’ll be giving each student today their packages. For those first and second years who have not experienced a weather system like this, I think they’re coping so far. UWI has extended help for those who may need to speak to someone. Classes have resumed online mostly in a hybrid version to give students the time to recuperate and get back to classes face-to-face perhaps next week. So the process has been going I believe faster than expected. And I believe that’s because we weren’t as affected as much in Kingston as the projected path had said and so we were spared.”

 

While food packages help, financial strain is a growing concern. Students spent beyond their budgets preparing for the storm and traveling to safety.

 

Bernard Pitts

“Food packages would help but I’ve been hearing from some of them that perhaps some financial assistance would help because they have expended more than their budgetary their budget could have maintain because they had to get prepared, they had to be traveling. Of course, the cost for Uber had gone up. Generally prices have gone up for persons trying to get to safety for a matter of convenience. And then we have those who have traveled from the island. They had incurred costs. I think the lease was somewhere around four hundred and fifty USD and those monies persons expended were perhaps for their rent, for their transportation, for some food, and so on. So they’re pretty much out in that regard. Financial assistance, I believe, would be welcome for majority of those persons who had to go beyond what they had budgeted for.”

 

Jamaican Belizean activist Moses Sulph and Bernard Pitts, President of the Belize Students Association of Jamaica, have joined the many voices urging the Belizean public to step up and support relief efforts for communities hardest hit by Hurricane Melissa.

 

Moses Sulph, Jamaican Belizean Activist

“ I have to say condolences and support to the people of my birth country, Jamaica, during this time of great devastation. And I want to send you word of encouragement that, you know I stand in solidarity with you and we stand in solidarity. And just have faith in God. And I think for those who have the resources, they should spread that resources in this time. Regardless if you’re from Belize or not, it’s a humanitarian thing. And for me, especially the Cuban, the Cubans have done so much for Belize so I think definitely Belize as a whole should come together and see how they can also send some resources to Cuba.”

 

Despite their own challenges, Belizean students plan to donate some of their relief supplies to Jamaican communities hardest hit by the hurricane. Shane Williams reporting for News Five.