Philadelphia family in Jamaica hunkers down as Hurricane Beryl hits island
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — The Jain family flew into Jamaica from Philadelphia on June 29 for the parents' 35th anniversary.
They planned the celebration months prior, not anticipating their first trip to the tropical paradise would be upended by Hurricane Beryl, a Category 4 storm.
At the resort where the family is staying in Montego Bay, guests were instructed to leave their rooms and move to safer areas in the lobby and conference rooms.
"We were on a flight on Saturday, and at that time it was a tropical storm, and we didn't know it would change to a hurricane," Jain said.
"The winds have really picked up and we can see the ocean water rising," Jain said. "We can't hear the outside but we can feel it. It's raining in a horizontal way."
George Hanson, who was born in Jamaica and lives in Philly, is in constant communication with his loved ones back home.
"The people in the inner city and downtown Kingston, I'm really worried about them ... Their homes a lot of times aren't as secure," Hanson said.
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One friend, Gregory Bent, is in Manchester Parish, Jamaica.
"A lot of trees are down," Bent said. "Believe me, I've never seen anything like this."
The Jains, meanwhile, remain positive about returning home to Philadelphia as scheduled on Saturday.
"At least we are together, so far at least things are not that bad, we have power … just feeling positive," Jain said.