–say flood was ‘avoidable’
–construction of $123M sluice in the area 97 per cent completed

NOW that the floodwater has receded and the clean-up has started, several residents of Little Diamond, on the East Bank Demerara believe that they should be compensated for the damage done to their homes and belongings. Approximately 100 houses were inundated early Monday morning after an incident with an excavator owned by BK International left a “slushy patch” near a koker in the area. The river water damaged appliances and other household items.
Residents are appealing to the contractor as well as the government to provide them with monetary assistance to replace their damaged belongings.
Adrian Beckles, who is still in a state of disbelief, told the Guyana Chronicle on Tuesday that residents have not yet received any information about being compensated for their losses. The Civil Defence Commission (CDC) is the only organisation that is offering relief to residents, he said.

Beckles said his entire family has been affected by the flood, and he has suffered losses.
“This is my baby clothes; it soak in all this nasty water, so I have to replace all of them. Right now, we want know where we finding money from to replace all the stuff that damage, Beckles said, adding: “Up to now, nobody ain’t say well we coming back today or tomorrow, and we gon render some assistance cash-wise or so. And that’s what we need right now. Yes, we thankful for the stuff from the CDC, but we need to replace we stuff; and we aren’t hearing about that.”
Abiola Smith, who’s also been affected, noted that since the flooding occurred, many of her fellow residents have not been able to go to work. This has resulted in a loss of income for some, she said, before noting that she took a two-day break from her selling business to ensure that she can try to salvage some of her household items.

“We need some help. Right now, this is not just damage to we property; it costing we money from we work. Two days I ain’t work,” Abiola said, adding: “I have a stall at Vendors’ Arcade; I does cater breakfast and lunch. Now when I’m not operating, who providing for me? Nobody! I had to spend yesterday and today cleaning out my house and washing, so I can’t work. And all my things damage and gone. And up to now, we can’t hear who replacing these things.”
Rameshwar Sahadeo said that in his over 25 years as a resident of Little Diamond, he has never seen a flood of this magnitude. He noted that his house, which is approximately two feet off the ground, was under threat, while his yard was inundated.
“I born and raised right here; this area never flood like this before this ‘koker’ start construct,” Rameshwar said. “Even with the old ‘koker’, we never had this kind of flooding. All the residents know that this flood could have been avoided, but the workers there they didn’t do what they had to do to full up back the hole they left on Sunday,” he told this publication.

The government, through the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) is currently constructing a new sluice in the area. According to Fredrick Flatts, the CEO of NDIA, the project is expected to cost approximately $123M and is 97% completed.
Prime Minister, Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips during a visit to the community on Monday had told the residents that he has received assurances from NDIA’s engineers that there will be no more flooding as a result of high tides.
“We have been given the assurance from the Chief Engineer of the NDIA, Fredrick Flatts, that the work that they are doing now will effectively seal the breach, and this area will not suffer any flooding tonight or anytime in the near future,” the Prime Minister said.
The PM said, too, that an impact assessment will be conducted to ascertain the extent of the damage the residents have suffered, after which the government will determine its next move. A house-to-house assessment has already been conducted, while food and cleaning hampers were distributed simultaneously.
“I understand what the people have gone through, but also, I am leaving here satisfied that the engineering work will result in the residents not suffering any more than they would have suffered already,” the PM said. “We will have a team that will come in here and start the damage assessment, and certainly the information gathered will help us to determine our next move,” he added.