Officials from the Ministry of Public Works say that if works go according to plan, the new Cummings Koker door should be installed and functioning by tomorrow.
The old door was subjected to a barrage of violent waves during a high tide last Tuesday which slammed it out of place. Shortly after the door was displaced, city engineers worked feverishly to install a temporary wall to defend against high tides which were expected the same day. This temporary solution has since been the only thing preventing flooding, as was experienced last Tuesday.
While the installation of the temporary fixture was done by the Works Ministry, its Minister, Robeson Benn had said that repair works were in the purview the City Council. He later said that the ministry was taking over the works as city had wasted time.
Yesterday, the new door was being constructed a few feet from the koker to which it will be installed. The officials stated that the works on the door have been progressing, and that they would most likely complete the construction by the end of the day.
They said however, that the door will most likely not be installed until tomorrow. Until this time, the temporary barrier installed as an emergency precaution will remain in place to defend against the high tides.
Benn had explained that the 8 x 17 logs which were installed would make a semi-permanent stop but would not react to the tide.
He said that that measure would keep the water out until the new door was in place.
The koker attendant had stated that the door broke around 5pm last Tuesday after which water from the Demerara River rushing through nearby areas.
Benn told the National Assembly on Thursday that the koker was bashed in as a result of negligence.
He said “it was not closed for a second time in a year because of negligence by the operator,” while adding that the breach had nothing to do with the strength or age of the koker door.
On Wednesday, Benn told Stabroek News that the Ministry has taken over the works to rebuild the koker and accused the Georgetown Municipality of delaying the process of fixing the door by not supplying the requisite materials.
Benn later told Stabroek News that a decision has been made to “make a completely new door” and that the city would be working along with the ministry on this.
On Tuesday, city residents watched with dismay as water levels in the Lamaha Street canal and others rose rapidly. Many streets, yards and compounds were flooded including those of State House and the Ministry of Finance.
On February 6 this year, the Cummings koker was left partially opened and flooding also occurred in several areas of the city while in June last year, a similar situation occurred when the koker attendant left it open.
