Heavy winds damage several homes …cause flash floods, disruption of power supplies

An early morning lashed Guyana on Wednesday, resulting in serious damage to several houses and also caused flash-flooding and the disruption of power supplies.

In a release the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) said through the National Emergency Monitoring Systems (NEMS) it dispatched teams to assess possible damage that may have occurred due to high winds and heavy rainfall reported across the coast of Guyana.

According to the CDC much of the weather conditions started around 03:00hrs and lasted until shortly after 06:00hrs. Several yards were flooded but it was observed that the waters were quickly receding with no significant damage reported, the CDC said. “There were sporadic reports of slight damage that were controlled by householders while three (3) households in Vryheid’s Lust, Success and Lamaha Park (Demerara-Mahaica); and two (2) at Westberry and Line Dam Queenstown on the Essequibo Coast (Pomeroon-Supenaam) suffered varying degrees of damage to rooftops.

The CDC said too that some damage to public infrastructure occurred. The commentator’s booth at Uitvlugt Community Centre ground collapsed while live wires were burst from main poles to private homes at De Groute, West Bank Demerara. Bartica (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) has reported severe flooding and the Regional Disaster Response Management Services (RDRMS) will continue to monitor activities in the regions with support from CDC.

Meanwhile, the Guyana Power and Light in a release early Wednesday said due to high winds, burst power lines, fallen poles and other infrastructural damages have been reported in areas such as: sections of Georgetown, East Coast Demerara and Berbice. The GPL said teams were dispatched to conduct remedial work and that every effort is being made to restore power to affected customers in the shortest possible time. The power company also encouraged customers to exercise caution and take the necessary safety precaution around our infrastructure.