Family Seeks Urgent Visa for Daughter Displaced by Hurricane

A heartbroken couple is urgently reaching out to the Home Office, requesting a swift resolution to their visa application so that their eight-year-old daughter can join them in the UK. This plea comes after Hurricane Melissa devastated their daughter’s home in Jamaica, leaving her homeless and in dire circumstances.

Lati-Yana Stephanie Brown, currently under the care of her grandmother in the severely affected Cash Hill area of Hanover, Jamaica, faces a precarious living situation. The hurricane struck on October 28, resulting in significant destruction and displacing many families. Lati-Yana’s mother, Kerrian Bigby, moved to the UK in April 2023 to reunite with her British husband, Jerome Hardy, with whom she married earlier this year. The couple resides in north London.

The couple has been diligently saving for the visa application fee, which exceeds £4,000, to enable their daughter’s relocation to the UK. After submitting a settlement visa application in June, they are still awaiting a decision from the Home Office. The situation has escalated from urgent to critical following the hurricane's destruction.

Both the couple’s lawyer and their local MP, Dawn Butler, have urged the Home Office to prioritize their visa request. Jerome Hardy, who works in telecommunications, expressed their hope, stating: “We are just waiting for a decision from the Home Office in the hope that we can jump on a plane to Kingston, rescue our daughter and bring her to safety in the UK.”

The aftermath of Hurricane Melissa has left Lati-Yana living in a cramped space with 15 other individuals in a room within her grandmother's home. Access to basic necessities like food and water is severely limited, and the local school is closed, complicating the situation further. Hardy elaborated on the dire conditions, noting: “The family home in Cash Hill has been completely destroyed by the hurricane.”

Kerrian Bigby, who works as a care worker, shared her emotional turmoil, revealing: “I am so distressed, I can’t eat or sleep. If I put any food in my mouth, I can’t eat it because I’m thinking about Lati-Yana who is struggling to get food.” She recounted a brief conversation with her sister, who lives nearby, where she was told, “We are all safe but everything has gone.”

Bigby revealed the last conversation she had with Lati-Yana before the hurricane struck, where her daughter expressed a profound understanding of the impending danger: “Mummy, if we survive the storm you will hear from us but if we don’t then take care of yourselves.” These words have haunted Bigby since the disaster.

In her ongoing appeal to the Home Office, Bigby emphasized the necessity of expediting the visa process, stating: “I am appealing to the Home Office to grant our daughter’s visa as a matter of urgency so we can bring her to safety in the UK.”

Hurricane Melissa, classified as a category 5 storm, has resulted in at least 28 confirmed fatalities in Jamaica. The devastation has left over 70% of the population without electricity, and approximately 6,000 individuals are still residing in emergency shelters as recovery efforts continue.

Naga Kandiah, from MTC Solicitors, who is representing the family, lamented the situation, emphasizing that Lati-Yana's separation from her parents was not by choice but due to the family’s struggle to meet the high visa fees set by the Home Office. “They worked tirelessly, followed every rule and fulfilled every requirement, yet their child has been left thousands of miles away waiting for safety and the comfort of her parents’ arms,” Kandiah stated.

This family's plight highlights the urgent need for compassionate responses from immigration authorities, especially in the wake of natural disasters that displace vulnerable individuals. As they wait for a decision that could reunite them, the couple remains determined to ensure their daughter’s safety and well-being amidst the chaos in Jamaica.