Bar owner's appeal for aid supplies for Jamaica

Junior Lewis said most of his family lived in Jamaica

A Jamaican-born bar owner in Sheffield is appealing for donations of food and supplies to send to victims of Storm Melissa.

The hurricane which struck on Tuesday is one of the worst in Jamaica's history, leaving at least 19 dead so far.

Junior Lewis, who runs Rumkeg876 on Abbeydale Road, said he had partnered with Birmingham-based food manufacturer Island Delight, which is working with Jamaica's Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) to deliver aid.

Mr Lewis asked people to donate non-perishable food items with a minimum shelf life of three months, personal hygiene products, including feminine hygiene products and baby supplies such as baby food and nappies.

He added that he needed someone to donate more barrels because they were already filling up.

"It feels surreal. A lot of customers have been coming and giving their support, god knows where we're going to put all these things, but we'll find a way," he said.

The category five storm brought winds of up to 185 mph (295 km/h) to Jamaica, before impacting other countries in the Caribbean.

In Jamaica, the impact was most severe in the south-western parish of St Elizabeth.

The death toll is still uncertain and most of the island remains cuts off from electricity, with some parts without water and scarce access to food.

Mr Lewis moved to the UK in his early 20s, but said most of his family still lived in Jamaica.

He said he had been able to make contact with most of them but had still not heard from those who lived in areas which were worst affected.

"I'm not too worried, I'm hoping it's just the lack of electricity which is the main issue."

He said some of those he had spoken to had told him their homes had been destroyed but he was used to experiencing storms himself as a child and young adult.

Mr Lewis said there had a lot of public support to his appeal

He added: "As long as they're safe and not hurt, I'm okay, anything else can get rebuilt - once there's life, there's hope.

"We've been taught and we learn that you get knocked down and you come back up, you brush yourself off and you keep going . We try to make the best out a bad situation.

"You'll find a lot of people, even when they're working hard to clean the place up, they'll still find time to party."

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