Rebuilding a roof after Hurricane Melissa

Roofs were the first thing Melissa took. The Office of the Prime Minister told Parliament that satellite and drone data showed roughly 116,000 structures with severe or catastrophic damage, concentrated in Westmoreland, St. Elizabeth and Manchester. Most of those roofs failed at the connections, not in the sheeting: wall plates lifted off the block work, rafters pulled out of plates, straps nailed into nothing. This guide is about getting the assessment, the permission and the connections right so the next roof stays on.

Before you touch anything

If you hope to receive any Government help, do not strip the roof before it is assessed. The OPM stated in December 2025 that only structures formally assessed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) are eligible for a Government of Jamaica grant for roof repairs or other reconstruction support. If an assessor has not visited, self-report through the MLSS Hurricane Melissa household damage reporting form and photograph everything from several angles with the date visible. Make a list of what was lost.

Repair or rebuild, and who decides

The Building Act 2018 does not apply to repairs or maintenance that do not affect the structural integrity or essential design of the building, but it also says a local authority may determine whether a type or scope of work falls within that exception. The Kingston and St. Andrew Municipal Corporation's guidance lists additions, alterations and external repairs among the works for which permission is required. Re-fixing sheets onto an intact frame is maintenance; a new frame, a changed pitch or a heavier covering is building work and needs an application. A phone call to your municipal corporation's building department settles it, and it protects you later when you insure or sell.

The drawing

Even for a simple gable, get a roof plan from a registered architect or engineer. KSAMC's application requires a roof plan showing all structural members with sizes, spacing, types, roof pitch and drainage. The design target is not a matter of opinion: ODPEM's Strap Up Jamaica campaign cites the 2024 Jamaica National Building Code document as requiring roofs built to withstand wind speeds exceeding 240 kilometres per hour. The Ministry of Local Government and ODPEM also note that a hip or gable roof performs better than flatter, overhanging shapes. Check your professional against the Architects Registration Board and Professional Engineers Registration Board lists; our contractor-vetting guide explains how.

The connections

Three lessons repeat across the official guidance:

1. Anchor the wall plate. The Strap Up campaign calls for anchoring wall plates using J-bolts and other approved anchoring systems. A plate that is merely sitting on the belt course will lift.
2. Strap every rafter. The Ministry of Local Government describes hurricane straps as metal connectors installed during roof construction to minimise blow-off. ODPEM calls them the quickest and most appropriate fasteners for securing rafters to the wall plate. KSAMC's city engineer, Xavier Chevannes, told JIS that properly used straps can withstand speeds up to 155 miles per hour, and that the failures he inspects typically have straps in place but rafters that are not properly spaced.
3. Strap to the concrete too. Chevannes also encourages strapping rafters to the concrete so that if the base plate fails, the entire roof does not go with it.

Then the covering. ODPEM's seasonal checklist is blunt: make sure that galvanised sheeting on the roof is properly fastened. Use the fixings the sheet maker specifies, at the spacing the engineer shows, into the purlins, not into fresh air.

Inspections and the certificate

Where a permit is issued, Local Authorities of Jamaica states that inspections are mandatory and cover steel work, foundation and belt course; your engineer can also ask for a frame inspection before the sheets go on. The Building Act provides that the local authority issues a certificate of occupancy when the work has been completed in accordance with the Act and the National Building Code. Keep the inspection approvals and the certificate; insurers ask for them.

If family is paying from abroad

Tie payments to the roof plan: plate anchored and photographed, rafters strapped and photographed, covering fixed and inspected. Ask for photographs of the straps and bolts before the ceiling goes up; after it is closed you cannot check. Our rebuild hub's vetting checklist covers the rest.

What JaRanks cannot do

JaRanks cannot assess your roof, certify that a design meets the National Building Code, or confirm grant eligibility. The code itself is administered by the local authorities and the Bureau of Standards; the quotes above are from official pages on the review date. Get a registered professional to design and a municipal inspector to check.