Floodwaters recede at Mahaicony
-situation under control
GOVERNMENT continues to monitor the unusually heavy rainfall afflicting Guyana, and has assured that the situation is under control. Floodwaters have already receded in some erstwhile affected areas, while Central Government has intensified efforts in other areas to spare residents the worst impact.
Agriculture Minister, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy and a team of agriculture and D&I officials visited Mahaicony yesterday to have a first-hand look at the situation and devise solutions to problems on the ground.
Government has been placing emphasis on bringing relief to the critically affected Mahaica/Mahaicony/Abary area, and the Agriculture Minister is assuring that all necessary resources will be deployed to ensure that area is drained in the shortest possible time.
“While the Mahaica area is under control, the water at Mahaicony remains on the land. We are hoping that, with the good weather, the Maduni Sluice will be closed. Once this is done and water keeps moving to  the Atlantic, it should avert major disaster for the area,” Dr. Ramsammy said.
While the last few days’ emphasis was placed on getting the pumps and sluices operational countrywide, focus will now shift to the three East Coast Demerara areas, along with The Pomeroon and Canals Polder Numbers One and Two.
Central Government stands committed to exploring additional interventions to assist in returning the flooded areas to normalcy, according to the Agriculture Minister.
The East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC) was at a critical level, at 58.45 GD, earlier in the week, but the situation has improved after the decision was taken to release water via the Maduni Sluice into the Atlantic Ocean.
Consequent to this decision, the Agriculture Ministry has been taking all precautions to ensure that the water discharged does not exacerbate the situation in the affected Mahaica/Mahaicony/Abary area, as those rivers, already swollen by the unusually heavy rainfall, flow into various creeks and rivers.
When completed, the East Demerara Water Conservancy Northern Relief Channel at Hope/ Dochfour will make it not necessary to use the Lama and/or the Maduni sluices to discharge water from the EDWC and put communities under threat.
With the rainfall experienced over the last 24 hours, the Agriculture Minister is urging local authorities to ensure that, where there are kokers and sluices, the doors are opened and closed in keeping with schedule; and to ensure that all pumps are working. Meanwhile, engineers from the Agriculture Ministry are monitoring the sluices and pumps.
Regions 1 to 6 were affected by the heavy rainfall, but in most areas the waters have already receded, creating room for the drainage system to accommodate additional rainfall should the weather persist. Meanwhile, in Regions 7 to 10, there has been no reported case of flooding, but precautionary measures are already in place.
The forecast for the next 48 hours indicates that the maximum rainfall likely to occur is not more than 35 millimetres per day in some areas. In other areas, the rainfall will be less than 15 millimetres.