by Howard Campbell, The Associated Press
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KINGSTON, Jamaica – Crews recovered the bodies of four family members whose shack was swept away by floodwaters as the death toll from a tropical storm that hit the island this week neared a dozen.
The confirmed toll was at least 11 people and likely to rise as crews search for another 11 reported missing, emergency management agency official Richard Thompson said Saturday.
The family members found dead included two adults and two children, ages 4 and 7. Authorities previously discovered the body of a 14-year-old boy who was living at the home, and an 11-year-old girl was still unaccounted for.
Tropical Storm Nicole fizzled out over the Atlantic on Wednesday, but not before triggering floods and landslides across Jamaica. Rain continued to fall in some areas Saturday, threatening more slides.
“I was stuck at home for four days” because the river was high, said Ranoldo Smith, 48, who lives in southern St. Catherine parish. “Good thing I had food at home.”
The storm forced the closure of more than 100 roads and two major bridges collapsed, Transportation Minister Michael Henry said. it will cost at least $4.7 million to repair roads and clear them of debris, he said.
Also among the dead were a 5-year-old girl crushed in bed when a tree branch crashed through the roof, and two construction workers sleeping in a shack that collapsed.
Most of the affected are poor people who live in shantytowns built on unstable banks of gullies.
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