Centre 'inundated' with aid for storm-hit community

George Cole was visiting friends and family in Jamaica a week before the hurricane hit

Just days before a hurricane tore through Jamaica, George Cole was visiting friends and family, soaking in the island's beauty.

But what followed left places he had visited like an "apocalyptic site", he told the BBC.

Hurricane Melissa pummelled into western Jamaica with record force on Tuesday 28 October, leaving communities displaced and isolated.

Mr Cole, the manager at Leicester's African Caribbean Centre, said they had received donations for those affected across the ocean.

He said they had been warned that a storm was going to hit, however Mr Cole said "I didn't think it was serious".

"So coming back [to England], and a week later for this to happen - it was quite devastating."

Hurricane Melissa destroyed homes and infrastructure, flooded neighbourhoods and left dozens dead

Watching it all unfold in the news, seeing all the places he had been to now destroyed, "breaks your heart", said Mr Cole.

"And the fact it landed in St Elizabeth, a part of Jamaica that me and my partner and I were in visiting, it was [unbelievable]," he added.

"Many of the places we visited...their roofs were gone.

"It just looked like an apocalyptic site. The sort of thing you see in a film."

He said it was difficult to reach people back in Jamaica but that he finally managed to check on friends when they found wi-fi at a chain restaurant in a shopping centre.

"[A friend of mine] was out helping carry debris, and he had three fingers cut off in the process," Mr Cole added.

"And just to think, a week ago this guy was perfectly happy, looking forward to going to his job."

The community in Leicester have come together, says manager Naomi Cowell

Before even being prompted, communities in Leicester have come with donations for those displaced in Jamaica.

Parcels of non-perishable food, clothes, medicine, bottled water, first aid kits and other supplies have piled up at the centre in Maidstone Road.

Mr Cole said they were expecting for the donations to be picked up later this week.

But he said he expected the hurricane to affect the community for months if not years, and volunteers at the centre would "be on the case trying to help people in Jamaica".

Naomi Cowell, also a manager at the centre, added: "We've been inundated [with donations].

"When community come together, they really do come together. And to see the strength, it's so heartwarming that they're thinking of people out in Jamaica.

"We normally think of taking time out to rest and escape to the tropical sands, but they need us right now, so it's time to give back and give thanks for everything Jamaica has given to the rest of the world. We need to pull together."

Donations are pouring in for the families affected by the tragedy across the ocean