City Hall’s ‘negligence’ causes flooding in Georgetown

–Gov’t forced to find operators for sluices, implement 24-hour monitoring system, Minister Mustapha laments
–CDC says residents have not reported household impacts

NEGLIGENCE at City Hall resulted in flooding across the City on Friday, according to Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha.

In an invited comment, the minister said a number of sluices were without operators, since the Georgetown City Council did not have operators.

“There were a number of sluices; two or three main sluices in the city that the Georgetown City Council did not have operators to operate those sluices. We had to go with NDIA (National Drainage and Irrigation Authority) to find operators to operate those sluices, and, once again, is the same thing; rain start to fall, and City Council started to get problems,” Minister Mustapha said.

He related that he has since asked the NDIA to monitor it on a 24-hour basis, and that they have already ensured that all sluices are operable.

“We have had continuous heavy downpour; that is why we had the build-up of water. And also, the forecast is showing that we might have some more rain,” the Agriculture Minister said.
On a more national level, the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) said it has received several reports of flood impacts along the country’s coastland.

Regions Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and Four (Demerara-Mahaica) were significantly affected with an average of four inches of floodwaters.

“Wakenaam and Leguan, in the Essequibo River, and Parika and Vergenoegen on the Eastern Bank of the Essequibo River have reported rising water levels in trenches and drains. That resulted in over-topping onto roadways, and into the Parika Market area,” the CDC said.

Residents in the communities, however, have not reported any household impacts, and the authorities on the ground have indicated that all kokers and sluices are currently operational.
Along the Western Coast of Demerara, areas such as Stewartville, Hague, and Pouderoyen have reported flooding in many residential streets due to the heavy rainfall.

At the time of this report, no water had seeped into households. Irrigation measures are in place in several communities in the region and authorities will continue to monitor the developing situation.

In Region Four, the Better Hope/LBI communities have also reported flooding. Persons there have said that if the heavy rains continue, the water levels can rise even further.

Additionally, there was a report of a high wind impact along Carifesta Avenue in Georgetown. No injuries were reported and the CDC liaised with the City Engineer’s Department of the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown to rectify the issue.

The CDC urged all residents to take the necessary precautions during this time and to report all impacts to local authorities or the National Emergency Monitoring System (NEMS) on 600-7500 at any time.

It was announced in Budget 2023, by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh that $19.7 billion would be expended on drainage and irrigation works.

There will be upgrades to drainage and irrigation systems across the country, as well as new pump stations which will be constructed at Meten-Meer-Zorg, Jimbo Grove, Belle Vue and Letter Kenny.

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