People sit in a shelter at Holy Family Primary School in Kingston on October 27, 2025.

As Hurricane Melissa battered northwestern Jamaica Tuesday, a global response was already taking shape. When disaster strikes a place as culturally significant as Jamaica, the world doesn't just watch; It takes action.

Relief Efforts Already Underway

Chef José Andrés and his team at World Central Kitchen partnered with Kingston's Mystic Thai restaurant to serve hot meals to families sheltering from the storm before Melissa made landfall. Now, with their network of local partners staged and ready, they're poised to scale up operations the moment it's safe.

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In New Orleans — a city with its own PhD in hurricane recovery — Reggae Fest organizer Joel Hitchcock Tilton pivoted fast. After this year's festival was postponed and Jamaican musicians couldn't make it due to flight cancellations, he hosted a Jamaica Benefit Dinner on Tuesday, October 28th, with 100% of proceeds going to local relief efforts. There's particular weight to that gesture coming from New Orleans, where they know what it takes to rebuild when your identity is tied to music, culture, and community.

The Welcome to Jamrock Reggae Cruise rerouted entirely, unable to dock in Jamaica as planned. Some of the Jamaican musicians scheduled to perform had to be replaced last minute because of flight cancellations out of Jamaica for the storm.

Relief organizations in South Florida also pitched in to stage supplies ahead of the storm. The Jamaican government launched supportjamaica.gov.jm, a centralized relief portal.

What People Are Saying

Social media, for all its chaos, becomes useful in historic moments like this: a real-time testament to who's paying attention.

The fastest man alive has been using his platform where it counts — posting emergency information, safety tips, and preparation guidance to Jamaicans for days leading up to Melissa's landfall.

What's Next

This is a developing story. As conditions allow and communication is restored, we'll be tracking relief efforts, organizational responses and the voices emerging from Jamaica's music and cultural community.

For now, survival is the only story that matters, and the global response that's already gearing up for everything that comes after.

To support relief efforts, visit Jamaica's official government site.