By Indrawattie Natram 

THE Region Two Administration, in collaboration with the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI), on Tuesday, brought some relief to residents of Red Village, Onderneeming, Region Two, who have been affected by water woes in the community.

According to Region Two Chairman, Devanand Ramdatt, tanks filled with water will be distributed to the area as a temporary solution to assist the residents.

He will also be engaging stakeholders to see if containers can be dispatched to the area to assist residents to store water until the well in the area is fixed. Speaking at a community meeting on Tuesday evening, the regional chairman assured the residents that the regional administration has heard their concerns and is taking a multi-stakeholder approach to deal with same.

He, therefore, called on the residents to assist each other during the water woes until a permanent solution can be made. Ramdatt, having learnt of the issues, immediately convened a meeting with the manager of GWI and the region’s works committee after which a meeting was organised in the area to advise residents of the temporary solutions.

According to residents, the community has not been receiving a constant flow of water, which poses major challenges to their daily lives.

During a public meeting conducted by regional officials in the community, residents said as of the beginning of 2020, the community has been suffering from water woes. They related that they only receive water from 22:00hrs (10:00pm) until 05:00 hrs in the mornings. Residents, predominantly housewives, are severely affected since they cannot conduct their routine chores.

A resident has also related that because the area is not metered by GWI, a fixed cost of $1950 is charged. They are, therefore, calling on the minister of housing and water to review the bills until the metering system is introduced.

“We pay for the water we are not receiving; we can’t even shower in the night. It’s a real struggle because we don’t have a container to store the water; our livelihood is affected; we need help,” a resident related.

In responding to the residents’ concerns, GWI Regional Manager, Brionne Gangaram, said that efforts are being made to fix the well in the community. He explained that the delay in the supply of water is as a result of a rupture in the casing of the well and that repairs are currently ongoing to rectify the issue.

He, therefore, said that GWI will be working to improve the quality of water and also the flow. He also assured residents that potable water will be made available to them until the well is fixed and thanked residents for their patience.

Residents, therefore, thanked regional officials and GWI for their intervention and look forward to more development changes in the community.