REPORTS from health teams working around the clock in flood hit Region 9 indicate that water levels are decreasing and that there continues to be no outbreak of any waterborne diseases. Aid and other forms of assistance continue to pour in for residents displaced by what some describe as one of the worst flooding to hit the Rupununi in history following two weeks of intense rainfall.
Yesterday medical outreach teams visited Tabatinga and St. Ignatius as the effort continues to provide additional support to communities and a list was made of all near term pregnant women and those due for delivery.
Additionally, environmental officers, along with the medical team, conducted health education talks with residents on water purification before distributing bleach for water purification.
Inspections were also conducted on the Berbice River following reports of water rising in the Kwakwani area and it was reported that Lamp Island and the Water Front were the two main areas of concern.
Regional Health Officer, Dr. Pansy Armstrong, is in the area and is leading a medical team which is providing support to the health team from the area. Outreach health programmes were conducted in Lamp Island and on the Water Front.
The Ministry of Health continues to maintain standby staff for both locations while medical supplies are ready to be deployed. The ministry has already begun to add to its stock of bleach and other disinfectant supplies.
Only two cases of diarrhoea have been reported for the last 24 hours; however no unusual health impact has been discovered, the ministry said.
Guyana’s Region 9 and much of Northern Brazil, particularly Roraima State, were most affected by the prolonged period of rainfall prompting Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and a team from the Civil Defence Commission to rush in on June 5.
The majority of farms were submerged as a result of the flooding, and President Jagdeo, who had recently returned from overseas, instructed Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud to derive a plan to support residents for the next six months, with food supplies and plant material.
“… the situation is peculiar in those areas where people rely largely on agriculture for their living and all the crops would have been destroyed by now in a lot of communities,” President Jagdeo said.
During the raining season, flooding in the Rupununi area is common to some extent for short periods; but on this occasion was higher by about two to three feet. (GINA)