Robert Lalah, Staff Reporter
THE MAGNITUDE 5.1 earthquake that shook the island Sunday night has left some residents still quivering. The tremor was the most powerful to hit Jamaica since 1993.
Across the island, stories of cracked ceilings and fallen chandeliers have been popping up. However, residents of Alston, a quaint rural town in Clarendon, seemed to have been dealt the brunt of the tremor. In that small town alone, eight homes have been made uninhabitable, and several others suffered extensive damage.
But the people of the town have taken the quake and subsequent damage in stride. When The Gleaner visited the community yesterday, one woman said that the earthquake was the most exciting event to occur in the pastoral town since a goat-pilfering incident of 1983.
WALL COLLAPSED
Meanwhile, it was the home of Ferron McKenzie that incurred the worst damage.
There, an entire wall gave way, taking with it a significant section of the roof. Mrs. McKenzie told The Gleaner that she, her husband Dascelle, and her son were all in bed when the rumbling started.
"I jump up and see my son drop off him bed. My husband dive under the bed and me and the boy run to the doorway," she said excitedly.
Mrs. McKenzie said the next thing she heard was the loud "crash" of the wall giving way. She said the ordeal lasted about 30 seconds. The small family has now moved in with friends elsewhere in Clarendon.
But there were other seemingly forgotten 'victims' of the earthquake. For instance, in the hills of Manchester, the quake ruffled more than a few feathers at Mignott's chicken farm a shanty zinc establishment.
William Mignott, the owner of the small farm, said the quake sent his brood of close to 100 chickens into a frenzy. He said the squawking of the birds summoned him to the coop late Sunday night, where he found that a section of the wall had collapsed.
DURING AN EARTHQUAKE
Take cover wherever you are.
Get under a sturdy piece of furniture, making yourself into a little ball.
If you are not near any sturdy furniture, take cover in a sturdy doorway.
If you are outside during an earthquake, move to the nearest open area, away from tall buildings, fences, trees, utility poles and electric wires. Drop, sit or lie down until the shaking stops.
Information taken from the ODPEM's website www.odpem.org.jm
