While stressing over the safety of her family as Hurricane Melissa hits, a Surrey, B.C. woman is hoping the local Jamaican community will come together to help people on the Caribbean island rebuild their lives.
Janice Davis owns Royals Jerk Spot Drive-Thru and Royals Beauty Supply – next door to one another – on 105A Avenue in Whalley.
Anxious and running on no sleep, Davis said she closed both businesses on Tuesday, but planned to open up her restaurant space to the Jamaican community as members await news from their loved ones.
“I am really worried about the people back home,” Davis told Global News in an interview.
Davis’ hometown of Rocky Point was under a mandatory evacuation order, as the hurricane, the strongest to hit Jamaica since recordkeeping began 174 years ago, made landfall.
While her mother has moved to higher ground, Davis said her two brothers, sister and niece remain in the small fishing village on the southern coast of Clarendon Parish.
The World Meteorological Organization said Hurricane Melissa would likely bring wind gusts exceeding 300 kilometres per hour, flash floods and landslides, marking the worst storm to hit Jamaica this century.
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Davis said her sister wishes she did not stay behind to ride out the Category 5 storm.
“I told her to leave. I begged her, we all begged her,” she said Tues. “Now she’s panicking cause the water’s coming in.”
Heavy floodwaters swept across southwestern Jamaica, winds ripped roofs off buildings and toppled trees, and numerous power outages were reported as Hurricane Melissa slammed the Caribbean island.
“I think she’s realizing how dangerous it is,” said Davis, who worries about people losing their properties and livelihoods.
“These people coming back are probably not going to have a home,” she said.
Davis said Jamaica is still recovering from Hurricane Beryl, which brushed the island’s south coast in July 2024, causing multiple deaths.
“It is our duty to help people back home,” she said. “This is why we come to Canada, so we could get (a) better life to help the unfortunate back home.”
Fearing many Jamaicans will be homeless, Davis is organizing a grassroots campaign through her restaurant, which doubles as a community centre.
She’s encouraging the local Caribbean community to help with non-perishable items and cash donations to send back home.
“It’s very important for me to give back,” Davis told Global News. “Because I know what it’s like not having, even with my business struggling, it’s because of the community why I have this place today.”
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Hurricane Melissa, Jamaica, Canada, Weather, World
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