Holland High: Two months of Melissa misery

Nearly two months after the passage of Category 5 Hurricane Melissa, the devastation continues to weigh heavily on the athletes of Holland High School and their head coach Garth Smythe.

Smythe said that many students are still struggling to recover from the disaster, which ravaged the western end of the island on October 28 and claimed the lives of more than 50 Jamaicans.

The veteran coach who took charge of the Holland programme in September after moving from Muschett High, said the hurricane has severely disrupted training, with many athletes unable to attend due to the personal losses they suffered.

“It is a big setback for us. I have about 30 per cent of my kids who would have lost their houses in the hurricane and some of them were washed out,” said Smythe.

“I personally have been reaching out to persons overseas to assist them and these are kids with potential and so it is a big setback and it has affected the kids mentally.”

“Today (Tuesday), I was surprised by the turnout of the number of kids. I think it was a result of what I spoke to them about over the past couple of days. I told them to use this as a vehicle to just strengthen themselves mentally because I know that it has been very hard on kids and their families,” he said.

Smythe said the school currently has 28 athletes on the track team, includes World Under-20 Championships 200 metres bronze and 4x100m gold medallist Shanoya Douglas.

He said the impact was not limited to the students’ homes.

“The hurricane also damaged the school and part of the facility was still being used for shelter up to last week and so the kids have been going through a lot mentally,” said. “Even in the evenings, I have to be cutting training so that some of them get home early because of the light situation. Some of their communities are still without light,” Smythe stated.

He added that transportation challenges have worsened the situation for the young athletes as many of them are now being overcharged whenever they go on the buses or taxis without their uniform on.

“The bus drivers and taxis are charging them double fare (adult fare),” the coach said.

The school’s principal, Dayle Evans, echoed the coach’s concerns, noting the broader impact on the school community.

“Some children were not able to return to school even though we were having training a week after the storm. Not all student-athletes were able to attend because some of their communities would have been cut off,” Evans said.

“Some of our athletes have also suffered a lot in terms of losing their uniforms and books but so far we have been able to provide care packages and clothing for them. The greater damage that we would have suffered is to our roof because the ceiling in most of our classrooms caved in, ,” he underscored.