SAN ANTONIO – A Jamaican restaurant on the North Side is leading recovery efforts for those impacted by Hurricane Melissa.
The Category 5 hurricane struck Tuesday afternoon near New Hope, Jamaica, with sustained winds over 185 mph.
Hurricane Melissa left at least dozens dead and caused widespread destruction across Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica, where roofless homes, toppled utility poles and water-logged furniture dominated the landscape Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.
Jodi-Ann Crombie, owner of the Real Real Jamaica restaurant on the North Side, was born and raised in Jamaica. She said she is devastated by the storm’s impact.
“I’m lost,” Crombie said. “There’s nothing that I can think of more than what our folks are going through.”
Crombie said she has not heard from her parents and grandmother, who live in Jamaica, since Tuesday morning.
“The last time I spoke to them about 10 a.m. yesterday (Tuesday) morning. They did advise me that they are locked inside their bathroom,” Crombie said. “I was begging and pleading with them to stay safe.”
Crombie described some of the destruction in her hometown.
“The schools and the church that we all attended there are completely demolished and destroyed,” Crombie said. “Nothing at all is standing.”
To help with recovery efforts, Crombie and Tashana Taylor Brown created a nonprofit called the Jamaican Renaissance Initiative.
The nonprofit and Partners for Youth Foundation, based in Florida, have collaborated to begin accepting donations to send directly overseas.
“Any kind of supplies can help,” Taylor Brown said. “Preferably nonperishable items because we don’t know when the power will return. So, it’s easier if we can get items that will last.”
Donations can be dropped off at Real Real Jamaica restaurant, located at 6828 San Pedro Ave.
“Diapers, medications, even if it’s just a band-aid, clothes, food … We are willing and open to accept because our people back home are going to need everyone on board,” Crombie said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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