Communities along the Mahaica, Mahaicony and Abary rivers yesterday reported that water levels have once again risen following hours of heavy rain.
Villagers from the communities told Stabroek News that water levels had dropped and rainfall eased for a few days but persistent downpours on Tuesday and Wednesday led to the water rising.
The communities have been inundated for approximately a month now. Since then, residents have been forced to dwell in their upper flats.
In Mahaica, Grass Hook villager Sunita Sarjoo said that the floodwater had receded by two inches and villagers were hopeful that it would have dropped further. However, when the rain fell over the past 72 hours, the water began rising again.
“The water come back higher than it was. You can see where the flood mark was but now the water come back it is higher than that,” she explained. She noted that floodwater is seeping into her elevated kitchen.
According to the woman all of the villagers continue to be affected and are in need of potable water.
Region Five (Mahaica-West Berbice) Chairman Vickchand Ramphal told Stabroek News that the region has implemented a system where affected communities are scheduled to receive water every two to three days.
“We have been delivering water to the affected communities. We have a system though where we have two 450-gallon tanks delivering water to the residents. The vehicle with the tank goes to a central point and everyone goes and collects water there,” Ramphal said. He noted that in some instances villagers who are not at home will not be able to receive water. Nonetheless, he said they are aiming to improve the system.
Additionally, Sarjoo said that farmers are still seeking markets for their cattle as it is becoming more difficult for them to survive as the water levels continue to rise.
“The cows head alone you see sometimes. There is a lot of water on land, a lot of it. In the rice fields you can drive your boat without any hassle or worry that the grass or rice will tangle on the engine, that is how high the water is,” she said.
Meanwhile, at Mahai-cony, livestock farmer Paul Durga related that before the heavy rains, the water had receded by two inches but as of yesterday it had risen by an inch and a half.
Eager
He related that the situation has not changed from the past weeks and as of now they are just waiting out the floods. They are eager for relief.
A villager of First Savannah, Mahaicony River, Ramchan (only name given) related that every day he is counting his losses since the floods.
The man, who is the proprietor of the resort “Down Under” which is being fixed to accommodate guests, said his investment went down the drain. He explained that the floodwater has invaded his generator room and compromised his hybrid electrical set up and damaged six power storage batteries connected to his solar power system.
He also stated that the water which has been knee high has caused damage to his furniture and appliances bought to furnish the resort.
According to Ramchan, he also lost his investment in the rice crop and cash crops along with fruit trees as a result of the flooding.
“Is a lot of things lost my brother a lot! This is the fifth crop I losing… it is just not easy for us we invest so much and the rains come and we lose everything…” he lamented before estimating his losses to be over $3 million.
His story is similar to hundreds of farmers who have been affected by flooding across the country.
The Civil Defence Commission (CDC) on Wednesday said that just over 36,000 households from 300 communities countrywide have been affected by flooding.
This disclosure was made by the CDC’s Senior Response Officer, Captain Salim October during a virtual stakeholder meeting held to fully activate the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC). According to October, since May 18th, the CDC has received reports that 36,083 households in total have been affected by the flooding countrywide.
In Region Six, 12, 391 households are affected while 7,166 have been affected in Region Three; 6,040 in Region Nine; 2,825 in Region One; 2,535 in Region Four; 1,084 in Region Two; 1,791 in Region Ten; 920 in Region Five; 819 in Region Seven and 512 in Region Eight.
In addition, he said that 216 persons are currently being housed at nine temporary shelters that have been activated in regions Two, Five, Nine and Ten. Of that number 175 of those persons are from Region Ten, 30 from Region Two, seven from Region Five and four from Region Nine.
