Regiment To Help Hurricane Relief In Jamaica
A contingent of Royal Bermuda Regiment [RBR] soldiers travelled today to Jamaica, where the group will lead a multinational body to support relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Melissa.
A spokesperson said, “The 26 soldiers and officers will be mobilised until February 28 to repair roofs in the parish of St Elizabeth, which sustained significant damage from the storm – a Category 5 when it made landfall there in October 2025.
“They will operate on behalf of Bermuda and are to be joined by eight people from the Cayman Islands Regiment as well as five from the Turks and Caicos Islands Regiment.
“Together, the troops will partner with the Jamaica Defence Force [JDF] and the Guyana Defence Force to fix as many damaged roofs as possible, delivering much needed assistance and immediate benefits to the local community.”
RBR Commanding Officer Lieutenant Colonel Duncan Simons said: “The Regiment affords Bermuda a mechanism to put boots on the ground in Jamaica to support the recovery from Hurricane Melissa, supplementing the Bermuda community’s generous support in the months since the storm.
“This is also an opportunity for Bermuda to lead a co-ordinated effort which includes soldiers from the Cayman Islands Regiment and marines from the Turks and Caicos Islands Regiment, demonstrating co-ordination and interoperability.
“During the two weeks, our soldiers will embed with the JDF Engineer Task Force South in St Elizabeth, where they will assist in repairing roofs across the community.”
A spokesperson added, “An initial recce was conducted by the RBR last November to observe the impact of the hurricane and identify potential deployment opportunities to assist the recovery efforts.
“While many projects were proposed, the roof-repair mission was selected for its capacity to bring results that will make an immediate and tangible difference to the lives of those affected by the storm.
“All RBR troops taking part will deploy with the primary role of labourer. However, specialist skills have been recorded for each of the volunteers so that they may be further utilised to help boost relief work. These include carpentry, masonry, landscaping, construction expertise and communications capabilities.”
As Commander-in-Chief of the RBR, Governor Andrew Murdoch stated: “With the full support of the Government of Bermuda, the Regiment can provide much needed assistance in Jamaica, making use of its skills and experience.
“I am particularly delighted that the operation will involve contingents from three Overseas Territories, working together to assist Jamaica. Those forces will be under the operational command of the Royal Bermuda Regiment, which recognises the leadership that Bermuda can deliver.
“I would like to highlight those RBR personnel responsible for the planning and execution of this deployment. It has entailed significant work, including a recce last year. The team have done an incredible job, much of which will be behind the scenes, to ensure the deployment delivers the help needed by Jamaican communities devasted by Hurricane Melissa.”
Minister of National Security Michael Weeks shared: “The Government of Bermuda is very pleased to honour its commitment to provide assistance to Jamaica following the devastation that Hurricane Melissa caused.
“As Minister of National Security, I am proud to note that the Royal Bermuda Regiment is once again rallying its troops to lend hurricane relief assistance to one of our close allies in the Caribbean.
“The Royal Bermuda Regiment has a long and distinguished history of providing such relief and I have every confidence that they will have an indelible and meaningful impact on the recovery efforts in Jamaica.
“This deployment will also deepen the very strong bond that Bermuda has with Jamaica, as well as the bond between the RBR and the Jamaica Defence Force.”
He added: “For such a time as this, the Bermuda Government is proud to deploy our RBR troops to render humanitarian aid and assistance to those in need.”
So when did this hurrycaine happen.
I miss something