INTENSE rainfall, coupled with high tides, has resulted in several acres of farmlands, yards and houses in the Upper and Lower Pomeroon River, in Region Two, being flooded.
According to cash crop farmers in Jacklow and Hackney, their lands have been under water since Monday night. Those areas have approximately 4 feet of water on the land, the Guyana Chronicle was told. Residents and farmers of Siriki, Abrams Creek and Dredge Creek in the Upper Pomeroon River, as well as those in Cozier Canal, Strong Hope Canal, Nunes Canal, Friendship, Aberdeen, St John and Liberty, in the Lower Pomeroon River, are all bracing for the worst. The flooding has affected approximately 500 farmers.
Regional Executive Officer (REO), Devanand Ramdatt, said a team from the regional administration has been dispatched to the Pomeroon River to assess the situation. He said that based on that assessment, the necessary recommendations will be made. The team includes the regional engineer, Kawan Suchit. Meanwhile, cash crop farmers, who contacted this publication, said the high tides have caused water to run into their lower flats.

They said this has occurred despite efforts to build up their land. “Year after year we are facing this flooding situation; we asked for block drainage and is still every time we have to start all over again. It’s really sad for our Pomeroon people,” said Garry France, a farmer. Another cash crop farmer, Joseph Garraway, said that on Monday morning he began moving his electrical appliances to higher grounds. He said he placed several sandbags at the entrance to his home and at various points in his yard but the water kept gushing in. Garraway said he has over 5 acres of farmlands underwater. He said his pumpkin, pear, and watermelon plants are all submerged.
The farmers are calling on the Ministry of Agriculture to immediately visit the area and bring relief to them and the residents.
Several months ago, several farms in the Pomeroon River and parts of Charity were flooded. The Ministry of Agriculture had distributed fertilizer, as well as planting materials, to the farmers to help them in the replanting of their crops.