A look at some of the damage caused by Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica. Photo: Provided

A team of 30 Israeli medical professionals who were deployed to Jamaica to assist the local population in the aftermath of the deadly Hurricane Melissa returned home to Israel on Tuesday, and its commander spoke to The Algemeiner about the challenges they faced as well as the devastation on the Caribbean island.

Professor Ofer Merin is the director general of Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem and has been commander of the Israel Defense Force’s Field Hospital operations for the past 20 years. A trained cardiac surgeon and trauma surgeon, he has been dispatched to oversee medical relief efforts in 10 disaster zones around the world, the most recent being in Jamaica. Merin spoke to The Algemeiner on Tuesday during his trip back to Israel with his delegation of medical professionals, which included doctors, nurses, and paramedical staff from hospitals all around the Jewish state.

“We integrated into the two hospitals and worked shoulder to shoulder with the local people,” he said. “It’s by far easier to set up as a standalone [field hospital] – you come, you set up your tent, you work and see the patients – but this way, you have to integrate and work with them [and] gain their trust, the patients and the health-care providers.”

The Category 5 hurricane made landfall in western Jamaica on Oct. 28 and caused extensive damage, including the destruction of homes, power and communication outages, damaged sanitation systems, flooding, and damages to infrastructure. Recovery efforts are still underway across Jamaica. There have been 45 confirmed deaths, 15 people are still missing as of last week, and more than 1.6 million have been affected, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Merin explained that two hospitals located in the disaster zone were severely damaged and completely non-operational. After speaking with Jamaica’s Ministry of Health, Merin said the decision was made for the Israeli team to assist local medical staff, and in treating injured patients and emergency cases at the hospitals instead of establishing their own field hospitals in the disaster areas.

“The challenge here was triaging the patients into the emergency rooms into hospitals that were overwhelmed, trying to figure out what was more urgent and less urgent, and working in a lower resources country than what we are used to in Israel,” he added. “Within two days we gained the trust of everyone over there, the patients [and] the staff members. They let us treat patients independently, and this was quite unique. We also assisted the health-care providers, which were overworking day and night because of the numbers of patients, and some of them lost family members or their houses.”

Merin said he and his team received tremendous feedback from the locals, who were grateful for their help. “People in the street would say, ‘Oh, you’re from Israel? Thank you so much.’ Jamaicans knew we were there. We got such good feedback. It was really heartwarming. The Jamaican people were amazing. They hosted us with such hospitality and open hands, and we gained their trust very quickly.”

Eden Bar Tal, the director-general of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said in a previously released statement that Israel’s humanitarian mission to Jamaica to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa “reflects the moral and ethical commitment of the State of Israel to extend assistance to regions affected by disasters around the world.”

“Jamaica has a long and unique history of relations with Israel and the Jewish people,” Bar Tal added. “As one of the leading nations in the Caribbean region, Jamaica is an important partner, and we are committed to further strengthening relations between Israel and the countries of the region.”

Hurricane Melissa was the strongest storm to make landfall in Jamaica and the second strongest recorded in the region. The storm also caused extensive flooding and damage in Haiti, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. In 2010, after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, Israel also dispatched a medical delegation and established a field hospital on the island.

Members of Israel’s medical delegation who traveled to Jamaica to assist in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa. Photo: Provided