Residents of the new Housing Scheme at Onderneeming, West Coast Berbice say that for the past three years they have been suffering from flooding every time the rice farmers sow their crops.

They pointed out that the farmers who have been renting the land from the Hopetown Co-op have not been taking precautions to avoid flooding the area.

A resident, Mitchell Arthur, 41, told Stabroek News that he made several complaints to the co-op and if “systems are not put in place we would continue to suffer every crop. I can’t take this; I fed up.” To avoid the problem, he said, the co-op needs to “put a koker at the high level canal so that the water would not come into the residential area. Only the co-op can help to “remedy the situation.”

He said the floodwater is not just causing discomfort to him and his family but has resulted in his house sustaining three cracks.

The man said he made several complaints to the leaders of the co-op and even made suggestions about what can be done to alleviate the condition but no one has paid any heed to what he had to say.

Regional councillor, Carol Joseph said though, that initially members thought that rice farmers were responsible for the flooding.

However after she intervened from the regional level it was found that the flooding was as a result of some youngsters removing a “stop-off gate.”

This was reportedly done, she said, to allow water to enter an area that the youths refer to as the “Hopetown Splashmins,” where they would go swimming.

According to her, members of the Hopetown co-op would now have to educate the young people about the seriousness of the practice and ask them to desist.