Editor’s Note: Our clients and systems were referenced in a recent New York Times article examining the impact of Hurricane Melissa and how rooftop solar systems performed during and after the storm. Readers who wish to view the article may do so using the link below.
👉 Read the New York Times article:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/08/climate/jamaica-hurricane-solar-power.html
Resilience is not a foreign concept in Jamaica. For generations, Jamaicans have navigated environmental uncertainty and economic constraint with ingenuity, perseverance, and resolve. From small business owners reopening their doors after floodwaters recede, to households restoring order and routine in the aftermath of storms, adaptability is not merely a response – it is our defining trait.
As climate change accelerates and extreme weather events intensify, hurricanes of Melissa’s magnitude are no longer exceptional. In this reality, resilience can no longer rely solely on human determination.
Our capacity to recover must be reinforced by infrastructure, particularly energy systems, that are designed to endure disruption and enable swift recovery. Jamaica’s solar and energy storage systems must deliver continuity, reliability, and stability precisely when communities need them most.
Resilience requires energy systems built to perform under pressure.
Systems That Stand When It Matters Most
In recent storms, a quiet yet consequential shift has been unfolding across the island. Properly designed solar energy systems have emerged as a cornerstone of resilience, supporting not only individual households but entire communities. Installed solar capacity has expanded from less than 1.4 megawatts in 2015 to nearly 65 megawatts by 2024, now accounting for approximately ten percent of Jamaica’s electricity mix.
Beyond capacity figures, solar has revealed a deeper dimension of resilience. When engineered correctly and installed to rigorous standards, these systems become anchors of care and solidarity.
Homes that retain power after a storm often evolve into community lifelines and spaces where neighbours gather to charge devices, preserve food, access information, and reconnect with loved ones. In these moments, resilience transcends technology; it becomes collective.
Post-Melissa reporting in a recent New York Times article underscored this reality. Properly mounted solar panels largely withstood hurricane-force winds, maintained uninterrupted power supply throughout the storm, and enabled households to remain operational while serving as points of support for their communities. The article, After Jamaica’s Disastrous Storm, Solar Power Is a Bright Spot, featuring SolarBuzz clients in Treasure Beach and Kingston, highlights how rooftop solar systems, when done right, deliver continuity of power and meaningful community benefit.
One featured client, Jennifer Hue of Treasure Beach, experienced flooding and property damage during the hurricane, yet her rooftop solar system remained fully operational. While the grid failed, her home stayed powered, allowing neighbours to charge phones, preserve food, and maintain vital communication.
Similarly, Twila-Mae Logan of Kingston was able to use her solar-equipped home as a hub for food storage and family support during the outage.
At SolarBuzz, we view solar not as a lifestyle enhancement, but as essential infrastructure that is central to household safety, economic stability, and energy independence.
These featured systems did not endure by chance. They performed as designed because they were engineered for Jamaica’s environmental realities and installed to standards capable of withstanding hurricane-force winds and extreme conditions.
Breaking the Cycle of Darkness
Despite this progress, access to resilient solar and storage systems remains uneven. While declining global equipment costs, government incentives such as the solar tax credit, financing mechanisms, and net billing policies should, in theory, make solar more attainable, local bureaucratic barriers continue to impede adoption.
Lengthy approval timelines, complex banking and net billing requirements, and lingering policy ambiguity place resilient energy solutions beyond the reach of many Jamaicans. However, climate realities demand the opposite approach.
Reducing dependence on long, vulnerable transmission lines and decentralising power generation directly at the point of use is no longer optional; it is imperative.
Incentive frameworks must therefore be clear, accessible, and free from protracted delays or cost-intensive administrative requirements.
Competitive financing from major banks, including the ability to integrate solar systems into new mortgages, is essential to broadening access to properly designed solar and battery solutions.
As Caribbean leaders continue to call for greater international support to address climate impacts the region played little role in creating, local action must demonstrate clarity, urgency, and execution.
Jamaicans deserve a straightforward, efficient, and affordable pathway to resilient solar adoption, alongside continued investment in strengthening the national grid.
For Jamaica, resilience now means empowering homeowners to invest confidently in high-quality solar and storage systems designed to withstand hurricane-force winds and deliver long-term energy security.
Deidre Wedderburn is the Client Relations Manager at SolarBuzz, dedicated to building long-term partnerships and delivering top-tier client experience (deidre@solarbuzzjamaica.com).