Regional officials yesterday said that the flooding caused by consistent heavy rainfall is creating misery and also affecting the agricultural sector.
According to Regional Chairmen, Members of Parliament and Village Toshaos, the heavy rainfall occurring over the past several days continues to disrupt the livelihood of residents. When this newspaper spoke to Roland Cox, a MP from Region One, he said that the heavy rains have caused flooding which is devastating residents as not only are their cash crops being destroyed but their livestock are drowning too. In a telephone interview, Cox said that communities on the flat land of the Aruka River like Arawini, Kumaka and Curricurri are mostly affected by the major flood the Region has experienced.
He said he was unable to estimate just how high the water has risen because it’s not the same all around but he shared that some residents’ houses were flooded three to four inches above the ground for those located in Kumaka. There, he said, business places at the waterfront are facing flood waters that are six inches or so, in height.
Meanwhile persons who farm cash crops and rear chickens are losing everything. Speaking about the cash crop farmers losses, Cox said, “every single thing they loss.” Chickens are drowning in their chicken pens, he said and water has overlapped at the base dam which the famers use for drainage.
Residents of St Cuthbert’s Mission situated off the Linden/Soesdyke Highway, also remained under high levels of water, according to the community’s toshao, Timothy Andrews. Andrews told this newspaper that the damage hasn’t been assessed by him as yet but from information provided to him, the water level is high and does not seem to be receding. He disclosed that he will be accompanied by members of the community council on an outreach today, when they will assess the damage. He was also informed that farmers at the river side have been greatly affected. He also said that it is still raining very heavily.
On Tuesday, Andrews reported that sections of the trail leading to the village had washed away following the heavy rainfall in the area and he blamed faulty culvert work for the condition of the trail. He explained to this newspaper that the section that was washed away first broke away two weeks ago and it was decided by the contractor that a culvert would be installed to allow the water to be drained. But the rains washed away the culvert on Monday.
Another region that is experiencing a destruction of cash crops brought on by the floods is Region Five. The Regional Chairman, Vickchand Ramphal, informed Stabroek News that Bora Point, First Savannah, Pine Ground, and Waterdog Creek are the areas that are affected by the Mahaicony River being flooded by the rainfall and further affecting residents in the region.
“Because of the extensive rainfall up river, the water has risen tremendously in the Mahaicony River causing a number of homes to be affected [along with] cash crops [and] livestock,” Ramphal said. He added that he was joined by the Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar, along with other members of the Regional Democratic Council, National Drainage & Irrigation Authority (NDIA), Mahaica, Mahaicony, Abary – Agricultural Development Authority (MMA), and National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI), to assess the situation yesterday and they distributed hampers, cleaning agents and other items that were needed by the residents. Meanwhile the NDIA and MMA have brought in an excavator which is being used to raise the embankment to mitigate the overtopping of the river.
The chairman also said that Moraikobai has been affected and the residents’ cash crops are destroyed. Ramphal said that hampers were packed with the assistance of the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) and the Government of Guyana and loaded onto a boat to be delivered to the Indigenous village. “That will be landing there and tomorrow myself and a team will go there to hand over the hampers and to look at other problems that exist,” Ramphal said.
At Region Ten, the waters at Mackenzie and Wismar have started receding, according to Chairman Deron Adams. However, the situation has become worse in Kwakwani. Adams explained that just before the interview with this newspaper, he was informed that a number of families were taken to a makeshift shelter at one of the schools in the village after the water in the area had risen to about ten feet. “It’s terrible there,” the Chairman informed.
He noted that in other parts of the region the waters started receding late Wednesday and receded some more yesterday but he is still “very cautious because we are still getting light showers.” “Like today we had light showers falling. It wasn’t that heavy but it was still drizzling, still raining throughout the day. I am still concerned if it starts back with heavy showers or pour, it would most likely lead back to that situation,” Adams told Stabroek News.
Adams added that the CDC has been in the region and has started cleaning drains which helped. He expressed the hope that the unclogging of drains will continue so that there can be relief in the area. The flooding in Region Ten has been a problem since Friday last. Adams had said that crops and animals have died and that he was concerned about the health of persons living in the area who still depend on pit latrines.
The CDC has released a statement stating that it has loaded three trucks with relief hampers that are bound for Regions Five and Ten, respectively. “The hampers were packed and stored at the National Gymnasium and are being transported to the two regions,” the statement said. It added that the CDC is working with all regional officials across Guyana to provide support where necessary during this rainy season.
The Chairman of Region Three, Sheik Ayube, said that there was unclogging of internal drains and trenches across the region. This has assisted with dropping the water level in some places he said. While in other places the water is about four or five inches high in the yards. He explained that Tuschen, Zeelugt and Parika were mostly affected but that remedial work has started so that the water can recede.
