The Guyana government stands ready to assist Dominica, whose territory was recently ravaged by the vicious tropical storm Erika, leaving deaths and serious damage in its wake, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo said yesterday.
“The government and the people are in solidarity with the people of Dominica and we avail ourselves… to render whatever assistance we could to the government and people of Dominica,” Nagamootoo told the National Assembly in a short statement yesterday.
He noted that the island received as much as 12 inches of rain during the storm, in which as many as 20 persons might have died, and a number of bridges and roads were washed away. “We [Guyana] can only understand in the context of having two recent episodes of flash floods and the devastation that would have caused to the lives of many people,” he added.
The PPP/C earlier in the day issued a statement expressing similar sentiments with regard to the destruction that the storm left behind.
Opposition member Clement Rohee read the party statement to the National Assembly shortly after Nagamootoo spoke.
He said the party takes note of the increased frequency and intensity of natural disasters that wreak havoc on Caribbean countries, which are already classified as some of the most vulnerable to climate change. Tropical Storm Erika is a stark reminder that the international community must unite and take urgent and meaningful action on climate change, he said.
The statement underscored the need to provide urgent and direct assistance to affected countries, such as Dominica.
