Knockalva Polytechnic College still recovering from Hurricane Beryl one year later
Published:Tuesday | August 12, 2025 | 12:11 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
The Knockalva Polytechnic College in Hanover, which is now steeped in preparation for its October 24 Founder’s Day celebration, is expressing gratitude to the stakeholders who assisted in its recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, which did extensive damage to the institution in 2024.
Addressing last Friday’s press conference for the school’s 85th anniversary celebration at the Rural Agricultural Development Authority’s (RADA) office in Catherine Hall, Montego Bay, Natalie Thompson, the principal at Knockalva College, said the Ministry of Agriculture and the Jamaica Dairy Development Board (JDDB) both came on board to help with the institution’s post-Beryl repair works.
“Hurricane Beryl was an unusual hurricane in terms of its timing, and I must say that the impact that it had on the college was of such where, up to this point, we are still trying to recover,” said Thompson. “Our administrative building and our classrooms were not significantly impacted. However, the building that got the greatest hit was our dairy parlour.
“We lost more than 75 per cent of the parlour’s roof, and that pushed us back significantly in terms of the development of our dairy programme. Since then, the JDDB has come on board and has provided great assistance in having our dairy parlour roof replaced. For that, we are immensely grateful,” added Thompson.
Before the passage of Hurricane Beryl on July 3, 2024, Agriculture Minister Floyd Green announced, in April that year, that his ministry would be partnering with Knockalva College to strengthen Jamaica’s dairy industry. Since its inception in 1940, the school’s mission has been to provide a multifaceted agricultural programme, which includes dairy farming.
Thompson also noted that while the school’s greenhouses were affected by Beryl, the Ministry of Agriculture has been approached for assistance to restore those facilities.
“Our greenhouses were also significantly impacted by the hurricane, and, sad to say, up to this point, they have not been repaired, but we have reached out to the Ministry of Agriculture, and interest has been shown in having us be stabilised where repairs, among other things, are concerned,” said Thompson.
Carlton Anderson, the president of Knockalva College’s past students’ association, said his organisation is assisting with repairs, which he hopes will be completed before the school’s Founder’s Day celebration takes place.
“I know for sure we have repaired one of the largest greenhouses at the school, and I think it was completed between December coming into January of this year. We have put back the saran cloth on that greenhouse, so it should be up and running,” said Anderson.
“At the same time, we are also looking at the hydroponics setup, which is close to the entrance, because we would like to work on that before we get to our Founder’s Day. We are also in the process of providing the material and the workmanship to cover the coconut nursery which is there, and the Coconut Industry Board has given us almost 2,900 nuts to replant that nursery,” Anderson added.
Shortly after Hurricane Beryl’s passage, the impact of the storm on Jamaica’s agriculture sector was estimated at approximately $4.73 billion in losses, with more than 48,000 farmers across the island having been affected.