Flood Risk in Jamaica

This report analyzes flood risk and the economic impact of meteorological events in Jamaica, highlighting a recurring pattern of damage to public infrastructure and the systemic failure to enforce land-use policies in hazard-prone areas.

• Economic losses from meteorological events in Jamaica are predominantly concentrated in public infrastructure, specifically roads and bridges. For example, in the case of Tropical Storm Gustav, 76% of the US$213 million Total Damage and Loss was infrastructural, with roads and bridges accounting for 74% of the total. Similarly, for Tropical Storm Nicole, damage to roads and bridges represented 82% of the US$239 million Total Damage and Loss.
• Flood damage in Jamaica is driven by rainfall levels both during and preceding an event, rather than the intensity of a storm. This was evident during Hurricane Michelle, where most damage resulted from rain during the system's development rather than the cyclone's passage, and during Tropical Storm Nicole, which followed five months of above-average rainfall (ranging from 115% to 172% of the 30-year monthly mean).
• Recurring factors that increase flood risk in Jamaica include poor environmental and watershed management, inadequate drainage design, and the placement of infrastructure in hazard-prone areas. Specifically, some roads were only designed for a 1 in 5 year event, and others for a 1 in 10 year event, while land use on hillsides has increased runoff.
• Despite policy intentions to establish 'no build zones' and limit development in exposed areas, Jamaica has failed to enforce these regulations. This lack of enforcement has allowed housing and other developments to be built in hazard-prone areas without vulnerability-reducing measures, which has led to loss of life.
• Jamaica's disaster management framework is guided by the Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management Act and the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM). However, the National Disaster Action plan lacks specific procedures for floods, providing only a list of involved agencies, whereas detailed plans exist for hurricanes and earthquakes.
• A critical barrier to effective flood risk reduction in the Caribbean is the lack of digital, scalable data for spatial planners. A 2010 UWI study of eight Caribbean countries found that while rainfall data was available in all, only three had it in digital form; similarly, only three had digital data on historical impacts and only three had watershed boundaries.

APA

Smith, D., & Mandal, A. (n.d.). Flood Risk in Jamaica. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Floods-and-DRM-in-Jamaica-_with-policies_final.pdf

Chicago

Smith, David, and Arpita Mandal. Flood Risk in Jamaica. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, n.d. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Floods-and-DRM-in-Jamaica-_with-policies_final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Smith |first1=David |last2=Mandal |first2=Arpita |title=Flood Risk in Jamaica |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |url=http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Floods-and-DRM-in-Jamaica-_with-policies_final.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{smithndflood, author = {Smith, David and Mandal, Arpita}, title = {{Flood Risk in Jamaica}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, url = {http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Floods-and-DRM-in-Jamaica-_with-policies_final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }