75% of St. Ann, Clarendon, Manchester to be restored by December 10
(November 14, 2025) JPS has announced that 95% of customers in the parishes of Portland and St. Mary will have power by the first week of December, as the company continues restoration efforts across the island. JPS President and CEO, Hugh Grant, shared the update during a media briefing in Rose Hall, Montego Bay, on Thursday, at which he advised that overall, 67% of JPS’ customers now had electricity.
The update comes following the restoration of power to over 95% of customers in Kingston & St. Andrew, St. Catherine and St. Thomas, within two weeks of the passage of Category 5 Hurricane Melissa, on record as the most powerful hurricane ever to make landfall in Jamaica.
Grant noted that despite the wrath that the system unleashed on the island, the company had managed to prevent a total shutdown of the grid, resulting in 23% of its customer base staying connected during the hurricane. “A hurricane of this magnitude has never made landfall before and its effects on the power grid network was brutal,” Grant stressed. “The fact that our teams were able to keep the lights on, is a testament to solid preparation, significant investment in grid hardening initiatives, and the technical expertise of members of the JPS team.”
JPS also confirmed that 75% of customers in St. Ann, Clarendon and Manchester will have service restored by December 10. “Our teams are working 24/7 and are finding creative ways to bring as many customers on board as safely and as quickly as possible,” the CEO said.
The company advised that extensive work was being carried out in the hardest hit parishes of the island. “We are continuing damage assessment in the parishes in the west, while working to repair critical elements of our energy delivery infrastructure. The transmission system, which represents the backbone of the power system that moves electricity across the island, was extensively damaged in these parishes. Without this backbone infrastructure, we cannot get supply back to our customers,” Grant explained.
The JPS President & CEO outlined the restoration strategy being employed by the company: “As we rebuild the grid network, we are focused on getting power first to critical services like water pumps and hospitals, as well as key economic zones and town centres. This is the best-in-class
approach, which allows for structured and efficient restoration, and we are reaping results – even in the hardest hit areas,” he said.
“We promised that we would be in the parish of Trelwany this week, and we have delivered on this promise. Several sections of Trelawny have already begun receiving power, with Falmouth Hospital, the Pier and the town of Falmouth now energized,” Grant announced.
In providing an update on the other parishes in the west, the JPS President & CEO advised: “We are making steady progress in St Elizabeth, with Santa Cruz now energized, joining Junction and Southfield and several surrounding communities, which were energized over the past few days. We are also making headway in St James, having energized several critical water pumps, hospitals, Fairview, and the Freeport business centre. And, by the end of next week, we will start restoring power to our customers in Hanover and Westmoreland.”
“This rebuild will be difficult because of the significant widespread damage to the network. But we are up to the task,” Grant affirmed. “We now have over 600 line workers on the job – including more than 300 from North America and the Caribbean, and we are bringing in more than 60 additional bucket trucks and specialized equipment to help expedite the restoration. We remain unwavering in our commitment to restore power safely and as quickly as possible to every home and every business. We thank our workers for their continued dedication, and our partners for their support and commitment, and you – our customers – for your patience and understanding,” he said.
