The Barbados Light & Power Company (Light & Power) has answered the urgent call for assistance from the Jamaica Power Service Company (JPS) following the widespread outages caused by Hurricane Melissa.
Through the CARILEC Disaster Assistance Program (CDAP), Light & Power deployed a highly skilled, five-member crew to support restoration efforts and help return light back to affected communities in Jamaica.
The team, comprising Distribution Supervisor Eddie Cummings and linemen Omar Bowen, Mustafa Haqq, Patrice Vache, and Kurt Vidal, departed Barbados earlier this week.
Their mission over the next three weeks is to support local crews on the ground in restoring electricity safely and reliably to affected communities in St James, one of the hardest-hit parishes.
At a send-off event, Light & Power’s Managing Director Roger Blackman and Vice President of Operations Johann Greaves commended the volunteers for their commitment and emphasised safety and adherence to training in what are expected to be challenging conditions.
“On behalf of Light & Power and CARILEC – because I am also a director on that board – I want to extend appreciation to all of you for volunteering to assist our brothers and sisters in a neighbouring Caribbean island,” he said. “Please be safe, and I am confident that you will do what is required from a safety perspective because it can get challenging in environments of this nature.”
“I am confident that you will go to Jamaica and make the company and the country proud. Remember your training, and all the safety procedures that you go through normally – not only for yourselves, but for all the other people that you will be working around,” he added.
The involvement of Light & Power underscores the importance of regional cooperation during natural disasters.
By pooling resources and expertise, members of CARILEC, the Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation, the association of electric energy providers and stakeholders operating in the Caribbean and other parts of the Americas, aim to restore power swiftly and safely, rebuild stronger infrastructure, and provide critical aid when it is needed most. (CMC)
