Bess 100FM Jamaica

15/11/2025

🔊 Attention St Ann! We are facing a new mosquito challenge. They attack in swarms and refuse to leave after biting. Chief public health inspector Leroy Scott is urging everyone to clear potential mosquito habitats around their homes. Let's work together to combat this issue! Read more: https://wix.to/7OB3GQt

15/11/2025

Major losses to State-owned assets in St James have reached a staggering $750 million, with estimates suggesting this figure could grow even larger. Mayor Richard Vernon provides insights on these significant damages. Read more: https://wix.to/wPihruT

MONTEGO BAY, St James — The tab is still running but losses to State-owned assets in St James now stand at three quarters of a billion dollars and that figure is expected to increase by almost another $100 million by early next year.“The corporation has sustained approximately $750 million in da...

13/11/2025

ST ANN, Jamaica — Councillor Ian Bell of the People’s National Party (PNP), who represents the Beecher Town Division, is calling on the St Ann Municipal Corporation to take immediate action to repair the main water catchment tank in the Epworth community.

According to Bell, the tank — which serves as the sole source of potable water for residents — has been contaminated by the remains of dead frogs, raising serious public health concerns.

“This is a matter of grave urgency,” Bell said. “The people of Epworth depend entirely on this catchment for drinking, cooking, and bathing. The presence of dead animals in the water poses a direct threat to their health, and the situation cannot be ignored any longer.”

The councillor explained that residents have repeatedly reported the issue to the authorities but claimed that the response from the Municipal Corporation has been slow and inadequate.

Bell added that the community has been forced to rely on unsafe water sources or purchase bottled water — an expense many families cannot afford.

“We cannot wait until someone falls ill,” he said. “Immediate steps must be taken to clean and rehabilitate the tank, and to implement regular maintenance to prevent this from happening again.”

Efforts to get a comment from representatives of the St Ann Municipal Corporation were unsuccessful up to press time.

Meanwhile, residents say they are hopeful that the matter will be resolved soon, as they continue to struggle with limited access to safe drinking water.

13/11/2025

Pop superstar The Weeknd has donated US $350,000 through his XO Humanitarian Fund to support Jamaica’s hurricane relief following the devastation of Hurricane Melissa.
The funds, in partnership with the World Food Programme, will help provide emergency aid to thousands affected — and The Weeknd is encouraging fans to join him in supporting the island’s recovery efforts. 💙

13/11/2025

Reggae icon Buju Banton sparked national debate this week after alleging that relief items sent to Jamaica for Hurricane Melissa victims were stolen at the airport. In a viral video, the artiste claimed that supplies—including a stove and a Starlink device—had gone missing upon arrival, expressing frustration over what he described as ongoing corruption and mishandling of aid.

However, his claims have since been firmly denied by Minister Daryl Vaz, who oversees the relief logistics. According to Vaz, all shipments from Buju’s team were cleared by customs on Tuesday and moved directly from the aircraft to a delivery truck under supervision, with seals intact and no evidence of tampering. Vaz also stated that the items Buju mentioned were not listed on the shipment’s manifest, raising questions about whether there may have been confusion regarding what was actually sent.

While the public largely applauded Buju Banton for raising accountability concerns, some observers say his accusations were premature without verifying the shipping documents. The incident has nonetheless reignited wider discussions about transparency, port operations, and trust in Jamaica’s relief distribution system following the hurricane.

Bottom line:
Buju Banton’s claims highlight valid public frustrations about accountability, but current evidence and official records do not support allegations of theft in this specific case. Further clarification from both parties may help to settle the matter.

13/11/2025

MONTEGO BAY, St James — Some schools in hurricane-ravaged western Jamaica are set to resume classes next week, using a combination of shift systems and makeshift tents to facilitate learning, Education Minister Dana Morris Dixon has announced.

The initial focus will be on students preparing for exams. Cornwall College is among the institutions slated to reopen, joining Mount Alvernia High, which welcomed back part of its exam cohort on Wednesday.

“We are working to get schools back, Cornwall College is going to get some students back on Monday. Most of the high schools in the region are working on it and so the focus for high schools is on those doing CSEC and CAPE,” Morris Dixon told reporters following a tour of schools in Trelawny and St James Wednesday.

“And then for primary schools, it is those doing PEP. So that’s what we’re prioritising: getting those children back into school so that they cannot miss out too much on the classes that they need to do well in their exams,” she continued.

“The ministry is going to support as best as we can to get temporary structures up. Schools like Cornwall College and many others that I’ve been to today need tents. We’re going to have to use tents to supplement the classroom space that we have available,” she said.

“We’re also looking at some other more semi-permanent structures too in the ministry but all of those you’ll hear a lot more about,” added the minister.

Morris Dixon encouraged resilience.

“Some schools we’re going to have to have some students in on some days and not others, something like a shift system. Some will be in the morning, some will be evenings, so there is going to be a lot of flexibility that is required,” she said.

13/11/2025

A wave of joy and relief has swept across Jamaica after conjoined twins Azaria and Azora Elson were successfully separated during a groundbreaking surgery in Saudi Arabia earlier this week.

The heartwarming news was revealed Thursday by Foreign Affairs Minister Kamina Johnson Smith, who shared the update on social media.

The twins, who departed Jamaica in July 2025 to undergo the complex procedure, received support from the Government of Jamaica and international partners through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (), which spearheaded the medical operation.

12/11/2025

A prisoner being transported from Bog Walk to Spanish Town reportedly died after jumping from a police Hilux pickup truck near Flat Bridge on Wednesday, November 12.

Reports are that the man was handcuffed to a tire when he leapt from the moving vehicle. The impact of the fall is believed to have caused his death.

The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.

12/11/2025

Agriculture Minister Floyd Green says a $3-billion plan is to be rolled out to help the sector recover from Hurricane Melissa, which has caused $29.5 billion in losses.

Green, giving an update on Melissa in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, said full details are to come, noting that the Agricultural Disaster Recovery Task Force, which is to centrally coordinate assessments, relief, and recovery, has been established.

He informed Parliament that approximately 41,390 hectares of farmland have been affected, impacting over 70,000 farmers, pointing out that approximately 1,251,410 animals have been lost.

Green said, as an immediate action, J$450 million from the remaining Production Incentive Programme is being redirected to emergency recovery, including replanting, restocking, and land preparation.

Green said the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) will this week start the distribution of 40 million worth of seeds.

08/11/2025

Devastating news for Jamaica’s Blue Mountain coffee industry as Hurricane Melissa brings an estimated loss of $1 billion. 🌧️☕ Huge impacts on our beloved coffee production! Find out more about the damages and what it means for the future. Read more: https://wix.to/FMnzw8N

Jamaica’s Blue Mountain coffee industry, pinned under the merciless grip of inclement weather for the past four years, has been dealt a punishing blow by Hurricane Melissa estimated at losses of $1 billion, according to sector expert Norman Grant.“We had estimated that the crop would be about 27...

07/11/2025

"Damage along Burnt Ground Road in Santa Cruz"

05/11/2025

Jamgas Mandeville, Saturday afternoon