Melissa silences Watch Night services

Hundreds of worshippers across St Elizabeth will ring in the New Year without the traditional Watch Night church services, as hurricane-damaged sanctuaries, lingering power outages and unsafe night-time conditions force most churches to stay closed after dark.

Reverend Godfrey Watson, chairman of the St Elizabeth Ministers Fraternal, said Hurricane Melissa has left churches unable to safely host late-night worship.

"It is very, very hard because congregations right across denominational barriers have been destroyed, completely or partially," Watson said. "Based on what I am seeing with the churches, they are not going to be able to meet at night for their Watch Night services."

Watson, who oversees two congregations under the Association of Independent Baptist Churches, said both suffered roof damage during the October 28 hurricane.

"One roof went off completely, and the other partially," he explained. "We have had to put tarpaulins in place and have started having services under those conditions."

At Spice Grove Baptist Church near Parottee, worship resumed in early November under temporary covering, but Providence Baptist Church in Hodges Land remains roofless.

"We have been having services since the first Sunday in November, but it has not been easy," Watson said.

He noted that the devastation is widespread, affecting almost every major Christian denomination in the parish.

"I have seen the Holiness churches, the Methodists, the Anglicans, the Catholics, the Seventh-day Adventists, the Jehovah's Witnesses, the AME Zion -- right across the board -- many of them have completely lost their roofs. Some have not been able to meet at all," he told THE STAR.

Beyond structural damage, safety concerns have made night travel risky.

"Without electricity and with some areas still not cleared, it is not safe," Watson said. "Honestly, I am not going out for Watch Night service. I have to travel very far, and without lighting, it would be dangerous."

Instead, many churches will shift their focus to daytime worship.

"Most people will concentrate on New Year's Day service," Watson said. "With God's help, we will get through this, but it will be a long haul for some churches to really come back together."

Hurricane Melissa tore through St Elizabeth, ripping off roofs, downing power lines and leaving communities -- including churches -- struggling to restore normal life as recovery continues.