… CDC monitoring situation, ready to respond

PERSISTENT rains on Thursday night severely flooded low-lying areas at Mahdia, Region Eight (Potaro/Siparuni) and also caused a disruption of road traffic into the mining area and displaced several residents whose homes have been inundated.

Region Eight Chairman, Bonaventure Fredericks told the Guyana Chronicle on Friday that the rains had eased during the morning hours and according to him the water was receding. He said the situation has resulted in a disruption of road traffic into Mahdia. “Nothing can pass at the moment “, Fredericks told this newspaper Friday afternoon. The Seven Mile area was hardest hit by the floods, residents told the Guyana Chronicle on Friday.
Minister of State, Joseph Harmon noted during a post- Cabinet press briefing on Friday morning that government is examining the situation and the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) will provide a report on the situation. He said the CDC has prepositioned supplies to areas such as Mahdia and Orinduik in the event of flood situations.
According to reports, the weather conditions changed during the early hours of Thursday night at Mahdia and continued through the night. A resident of Central Mahdia reported that the floodwaters forcefully washed away sections of the roadway in the low-lying sections of Mahdia, including the approach to a main bridge closer to the mining community. As much as two feet of the approach was washed away, and the regional authorities are awaiting the water to completely recede before implementing any temporary measures.

Fredericks said that thus far, five homes which are located in the “Valley” between the airstrip and Central Mahdia were flooded. He said the residents there were advised last year that they should relocate since the area was prone to flooding.
Meanwhile, Minister Harmon noted that the CDC and the Guyana Peoples Militia (GPM) are currently engaged in responder training, where persons in the communities are provided with training to respond “very quickly” to emergency situations. He said that the CDC is engaged in the programme throughout the country, in all 10 administrative regions. Region Eight has felt the brunt of the annual May /June rains this year. Last month, several villages were completely swamped by flooding caused by persistent rains. Relief efforts have been ongoing while homes which were damaged by the floods are being renovated. The floods have been caused by persistent rainfall over a two week period, which resulted in several waterways surpassing their optimum levels.
In addition, reports were that the Ireng River, which lies on Guyana’s border with Brazil, overtopped, and as a result, several nearby villages were inundated. Several government agencies, including the Ministry of State, Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs, the Ministry of Public Health and the CDC have been coordinating relief efforts.

Fredericks said that he visited several affected villages, including Waipa, Chiung Mouth and Kaibaurupai which were swamped by the flood waters. Kanapang, Kopinang, and Chenapau were also inundated for several days while several villages in Region Seven including Kamarang and Jawalla were also flooded.

Recently a meeting was held with residents, Fredericks and Region Seven Chairman, Gordon Bradford, as regards the ongoing relief efforts to the affected villages. Fredericks said the CDC is assisting with tools such as chainsaws for residents to rebuild their homes while the Regional Administration is providing gasoline and oil in the ongoing effort.