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By Farah Bates
Residents of Region Six, East Berbice Corentyne have been hit hard with the current flooding situation in Guyana. For some, the water continues to rise and they continue to suffer losses, not just with their animals but household materials. However, in some areas the water has receded but the damage left behind is quite impacting. In those areas where the water has receded, many residents who spoke with the Village Voice News said that the fear of another such flood remains, given the fact that as soon as the rain falls the water rises again. They noted that while they may want to begin cleaning and disinfecting their yards, they are worried about another flooding since the Guyana Hydro-meteorological Service indicated that the current heavy persistent rainfall will most likely end mid-July/August.
Some residents noted that this is the first time they have seen such massive flooding across the Region. However, the relevant authorities have been braving the weather and making the necessary interventions to have the water drained off the residential areas. A number of pumps and machines were deployed to several areas in Region Six over the past weeks. In areas where the water had been rising continuously, additional pumps were installed and machines were used to widen some of the channels so as to allow more water to be pumped out into the ocean.
When President Irfaan Ali visited the region last week, he explained that only until the water from the backlands is drained off, then the residential areas will not be affected by heavy flooding. He noted that the volume of water in the backlands is huge and that water has been draining into the residential areas.
“The volume of water in the backland and across our country is just enormous. One of the things that we have to understand is that if the rain stops today and the pump continues to work; the water will keep coming for some time because of the volume of water that’s in the backland. When the water recedes, the CDC, the RDC and ministry of agriculture will have a full assessment of the damages and then we will have another intervention.”
Regional Chairman, David Armogan also explained that interventions have been made at the regional level to prevent the water from entering the residential area. One of such interventions is to empolder the communities so that the water can be stopped at a certain point rather than draining into the housing areas. He noted that while they are making every effort to battle this current situation, it will take some time before the water completely recedes from the land. He also noted that as of to date, the water has begun dropping but very slowly. Meanwhile, in some areas the water has already dropped several inches.
“In the Black Bush Polder area the water has been dropping but very very slowly. We would say that the water dropped about 4 to 5 inches since the flooding started. But in other areas, what we find is that there is a buildup of the water. What we are also doing at the regional level too is that we are hiring a lot of these rice field pumps to assist with pumping out these waters. We do not have so much of the big pumps and so we have decided to start paying these people with the small rice field pumps $500 an hour to pump water out of the different areas.”
To boost their efforts, Armogan noted that the Disaster Preparedness Committee will be responsible to monitor the entire region as well as the everyday figures as it relates to the level of water in all the areas. He noted that, if the committee is not able to manage the situation in the event it gets worse, they will seek assistance from the Civil Defence Commission as well as other related agencies. The committee will be headed by the Regional Chairman.
Hamper Distribution
Thus far, the hamper distribution in Region Six has been a success. Approximately 4000 households have since benefitted from the initiative and more are expected to receive their hampers in the coming weeks. David Armogan noted that they have completed the Chesney, Whim/Bloomfield, Number 19 Village, Black Bush Polder, Babu John, 52/74 areas; however he noted that some more hampers will be distributed to the 52/74 area as well as Fyrish Village.
Apart from the food hampers given to the residents, they have also received sanitisation kits which is also a necessity during this time. According to the chairman, the Health team has been visiting the affected areas and are distributing medication to the residents. Also, the CDC has been distributing water purification pills and other sanitising agents to ensure the residents stay protected and there is no outbreak of waterborne diseases.
“The health has been going around to those areas where the water has receded and providing assistance to the people in terms of medicine for itching and skin disease and so. So far we don’t have any reported outbreak of waterborne diseases but we have had cases of things coming out on people’s toes and rashes on their skin which we are dealing with. Thankfully, we don’t have an outbreak but the problem is that outbreak usually comes after the water go down but nevertheless the health team is out and doing their best to protect the people of this region.”
The CDC has also been on the ground assisting residents of Region Six. The sanitization packages that were given to the residents contain a variety of cleaning agents that will ensure they stay clean and protected from the contaminated flood waters. They were advised to take all the necessary precautions for their safety, in the meantime work is being done to have the accumulated water drained off the land.
Head of the Civil Defence Commission, Kester Craig said they will continue to work with residents of all 10 administrative regions to ensure they are safe and secure during this time. He noted that the CDC also distributed pill hampers to residents who are having issues with water given the fact that water borne diseases are easily transmitted. Presently, one of the major concerns for residents in Region Six is the water used for drinking. There have been complaints about the tap water being rusty and very dirty in some parts of Region Six. This is as a result of one of the main pipes from GWI being disrupted due to the flooding.
“In instances where they have issues with water, we ensure that there are water purification tablets so that people can have pure water to drink. We have distributed disinfectants and bleach to residents so that they can ensure their environment is safe. As much as we can provide food hampers to persons to bring some relief to those affected, we will continue to do that”
The National Drainage and Irrigation Authority has been on the ground in region six assisting the Regional Democratic Council with their flood relief efforts.
