Thousands of Jamaicans were still without power, water and internet service on Thursday as the government continued to assess the widespread damage from Hurricane Melissa.

Days after the hit from Jamaica’s most catastrophic hurricane, the scope of the damages are becoming more clear. Aerial images reveal razed neighborhoods and trees without a single leaf — a classic sign of a top-tier tornado, or a hurricane blowing with the same force.

Multiple hospitals on the western side of the island were shredded, and more than 100 roads remain blocked. The government, which is still not yet saying what the death toll is, has dedicated a Jamaica Defense Force helicopter to locate and coordinate the collection of bodies.

“I’ve been hearing some stories that I don’t want to repeat,” Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie said during a press conference, “because the police have not confirmed those reports.”

“What I will say,” he added, “is there have been casualties, and we do anticipate, based on our information, that there’ll be more.”

As Melissa battered Jamaica, it dumped torrential rains on Haiti and then on five provinces in eastern Cuba, exposing more than 3 million people to life-threatening conditions. So far no fatalities have been reported in Cuba, where the government evacuated 735,000 people. “However, the authorities have indicated that nearly 240 communities are cut off due to the flooding and the landslides,” the United Nations Resident Coordinator for the island, Francisco Pichon, said.

“The current emergency is also, I should say, compounded by droughts in the area and also by a serious epidemiological situation with a rise in arboviral diseases, and also a very delicate energy situation with frequent blackouts,” he said. Given Cuba’s delicate situation and its ongoing U.S. sanctions, the U.N. was preparing a $2 million response plan to help.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday the United States is also prepared to provide immediate humanitarian aid to the people of Cuba affected by the hurricane. Shortly after the statement, Cuban officials signaled they were considering the offer, a surprising gesture that breaks Cuba’s tradition of flatly rejecting disaster aid from the U.S. government.

The U.S. offer to Cuba came after President Donald Trump directed the State Department to mobilize support for communities affected by Melissa. On Thursday, officials in Jamaica deployed emergency crews to help clear roads and drop food and supplies into marooned communities. Members of the Jamaica Defense Force also went in on foot, while others continued to conduct reconnaissance flights.

While it’s far too early for a full accounting of the economic impact of the fearsome storm, an initial estimate from for-profit weather firm Accuweather suggests it could be $48 to $52 billion. That’s a leap from the analysis released on landfall day that pegged damages at $22 billion.

That’s already a far higher total than last year’s brush with Hurricane Beryl, another Category 5 that came near Jamaica but did not make landfall. Jamaica’s planning institute estimated the losses from Beryl at $32 billion.

Much of Hurricane Melissa’s damage is concentrated in industries like agriculture and tourism, which will take time to recover. But home and business owners will also need a great deal of help to rebuild. An analysis by re-insurance company Guy Carpenter suggests that on the western end of the island, only 5% to 10% of people have insurance to cover storm damages to their homes.

“Ultimately, Melissa will be a severe economic loss event, with a slim minority of damages covered by insurance,” the report read.

With the loss of electricity, cell phone towers, Wi-Fi hubs and Wi-Fi hotspots in over 100 communities due to hurricane damage, government ministers tried reassuring the country’s 2.8 million residents and their families living abroad that restoring commuications is a priority — as is accessing communities cut off by Melissa.

“We will get there,” Information Minister Dana Morris Dixon said. “We are going to get to every single Jamaican and give them support.”

More than 170 communities have either been moderately or severely affected by Melissa, which made landfall Tuesday as a Category 5. The storm’s 185 mph winds ripped off rooftops, flooded bridges and blocked most of the country’s roads. Six parishes remain the most affected, McKenzie said: Manchester, Saint Elizabeth, Trelawny, Hanover, Westmoreland and St. James. The last two have been described as ground zero for the devastation. McKenzie said the number of people in the shelters had been reduced to about 13,000 persons and shelters will remain open.

There is some good news. The cruise ports in Ocho Rios, San Antonio and Port Royal had all fared well and as of Friday can start accepting vessels, the government announced. The ports in Montego Bay and Falmouth, where the town was badly affected, however, suffered damages.

Another bright spot: All three of the country’s international airports have reopened for relief flights. Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston — where storm damages were less severe — has also resumed limited commercial operations and on Thursday had 10 scheduled flights arriving, Transport and Telecommunications Minister Daryl Vaz announced.

Arriving on one of the first flights was Cayman Islands Premier André Ebanks. Joined by members of his cabinet and the leader of the opposition, Joey Hugh, Ebanks brought generators, medical supplies, meals and other essential items, saying he recalled Jamaica’s support when the Caymans were struck by Hurricane Ivan in 2004. Ebanks said his government plans to ship an additional $1.2 million worth of in aid.

“We'll have a host of other colleagues and friends that will come in the coming days and weeks,” Ebanks said.

Norman Manley airport is among several places where power has been restored. But while 52,000 customers across the country got their lights turned back on, approximately 490,380 customers are still without electricity, Vaz acknowledged.

“We understand the frustration. We understand the anxiety,” he said.

Long recovery ahead

Jamaica faces a long recovery. Even though the rains have stopped, areas of western parishes where Melissa made landfall were still under water.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Andrew Holness visited a number of hard-hit communities, including St. Elizabeth and St. James parishes. On Thursday, he had hoped to visit others, weather permitting.

“The devastation is truly heartbreaking,” he said, remarking that the spirit of Jamaicans people remains unbroken.

During the Thursday press conference, Holness’ teams noted that they were facing a number of challenges.

“Twenty-four hours to 30-odd hours after the event, we are still clearing the roads and restoring access islandwide,” Public Works Minister Robert Morgan said. “We are not able to provide a full cost as yet as to what the impact has been.”

The storm damaged the country’s road network. Of more than 151 roads affected by the storm, only 11 had been fully restored as of noon on Thursday and 134 remain blocked.

In some cases, they were made impassable by fallen power lines and trees, and in others by debris.

In South St. Elizabeth, where equipment has been deployed, the effort has been blocked by four feet of sand adjacent to the sea, stretching for over a mile.

“That is not going to be cleared in 24 hours,” Morgan said. “Our contractors are active, we are active on the ground, but the reality that we face is that we require time.”

The challenges were equally daunting as the government tried to restore water access to communities. Generators were in route, Matthew Samuda, the minister of water, environment and climate change, said as he also detailed the disruptions the storm had created to major supply lines.

“We are pushing very hard.”

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