Residents disappointed that creek not dredged

Residents of the Abary Creek are disappointed that although President Bharrat Jagdeo had given instructions for the mouth of the creek to be dredged the work has still not been done and the water has remained stagnant.

Mahase Prahalad told Stabroek News that when the president visited the creek three weeks ago he made a request for the dredging of the mouth of the Abary to be continued and the president agreed.

He had told Jagdeo that in March last year he “fight up” for the creek to be dredged and within four days the water started to drain. Prahalad is sure that if the creek had been dredged the water would not have remained stagnant.

He and other residents were looking forward for the creek to be dredged but since the president gave the commitment no one has said anything to them and nothing has been done.

On Monday, he said, he visited the Region Five office at Fort Wellington and spoke to the chairman, Harrinarine Baldeo who promised to check with the officials at the Mahaica, Mahaicony, Abary/Agricultural-Development-Authority (MMA/ADA).

He said the rain had eased up over a week ago but the floodwaters have only receded by around four inches. The stagnant water is causing residents to suffer various ailments.

The man said that “this flood is worse than in 2005. Right now people punishing in the creek; they don’t have jobs, no kitchen garden and no foodstuff.” The government had distributed foodstuff through the Civil Defence Committee but it is almost finished.

He pointed out that the residents normally depend on the creek water for household purposes but because animals have died and are floating in the water it is not safe to use. The toilets are also overflowing and residents have to traverse the water and are getting sick.

According to him the residents have no choice but to use the water because not all of them are fortunate to have tanks. He said that after the 2005 flood government gave tanks to be distributed to residents in the creek “but people on the road who nah even had flood get.”

He said he as well as other persons who deserve the tanks did not get any. He later bought a tank that had “burst” and had to patch it before he could start using it.

He said the medical team visited the area on two occasions and is expected to be back in the creek by tomorrow. The vets from the Ministry of Agriculture have also visited and treated the sick animals.

He said the water is still high in residents’ yards and they have lost their kitchen gardens and some livestock. He said too that the remaining animals cannot drink the creek water because of the green moss which has started to take over sections of the creek and has caused the animals to become sick.

Over in the Mahaica and Mahaicony creeks, residents said the water is going “slowly but surely” with a drop of about one inch every day.

As they watch the water recede and are praying for it to go completely, residents said there is nothing for them to do to earn a living until another two months. They are worried that by then the “May/June rain gon come on we again.”

Livestock farmers were forced to sell their stocks and they said the buyers have taken advantage of the situation and have paid them cheap prices.

The water level at Mahaica Creek had receded by about 6 inches while at Mahaicony Creek it had dropped by about eight inches.

Though residents are happy that the water is “moving” they are fearful that the water would rise again once there is heavy rainfall because “the land already soak…”

They said too that they are bracing for the water to rise even higher with the “high spring” that is expected for the new moon on January 26. They said when the water rises for the “moon it does take a few days to go down.”