CDC says floodwaters drop in Region Seven

– but welfare of residents still at risk

The Civil Defence Commission (CDC) has reported, through the Department of Public Information (DPI), that water level in Region Seven has significantly reduced, but the welfare of residents are still at risk.

The observation was made on Saturday by CDC Director General, Lieutenant Colonel Kester Craig, who along with members from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA)  visited a number of communities in the Lower and Middle Mazaruni.

In the visit the team also noted the need for more aggressive health interventions and said they would communicate this to the Ministry of Health. The health risks associated with flooding are diarrhoea (including cholera and dysentery), respiratory infections, hepatitis A and E, typhoid fever, leptospirosis, and diseases borne from insect bites. In Guyana malaria could be contracted from the bite of a certain type of female mosquito, the Anopheles.

Region Seven is a mining region and mining is the Region’s main economic activity. The flood, which has been going on for more than a month, has left affected communities in disarray. In some cases homes and businesses directly located along the river banks in Region Seven were covered by as much as 12 to 15 feet of water.  Many families have reportedly been forced to relocate inland, on boats and pontoons.

During the period the CDC has disbursed a number of hampers to the Region, inclusive of food, cleaning and health packages. But the physical, social and economic dislocations resulting from the flood would present challenges for residents to return to a life of normalcy in a short time.

In the meantime, the CDEMA Preparedness and Response Manager, Joanne Persad and Programme Officer Rasheed Pinder, are currently in Guyana leading the team conducting the Detailed Damage Sector Assessment (DDSA) on Guyana’s flooding situation.