A second round of spring tides in less than a month saw Mahaicony residents complaining that yesterday’s flooding was even higher than that at the end of September even as the authorities continue repairs to breaches in an eroded sea dam.
After the spring tides hit on September 26, the authorities had devised a plan to seal breaches along a stretch of the Mahaicony Coast, Region Five by October 26 but were unable to do this because of several setbacks and yesterday residents from Dantzig to Fairfield were in even deeper misery.
Yesterday afternoon’s tide was expected to be the highest, reaching 3.31 meters around 4.13 pm.
Residents explained that yesterday morning the tide rose rapidly which left some residents with little or no time to move or adequately prepare. Other residents who were affected by the tide on Saturday were already prepared.
When Stabroek News visited villages along the Mahaicony coast yesterday afternoon, water remained on the land from the morning’s tide as residents awaited the highest tide. One woman who resides in the Prospect area and asked not to be named was standing on the main road outside of her home and watched as the water continuously rose in a nearby drain. The woman noted that just a few weeks ago following the September spring tide, a mud dam was erected just behind their homes to prevent water from getting into their yards.
Further along in the Fairfield area, homes on the northern side of the main road appeared as though they were not affected however, that was not the case. Further north, to the back of homes, a number of small farms and kitchen gardens were flooded. One resident who is also a representative of the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), Cleveland Ramsammy told Stabroek News that though it may appear that they were not affected, they were and agencies that traverse the area to assess the damage would just pass them by as “from the front” it looks as though everything is fine.
In Ramsammy’s backyard, vegetable crops perished as the water rose in the area. “When you pass in front there you won’t see the damage at the back here. They need to come out and look at everybody and see how we affected”, Ramsammy said. The man further added that some residents are facing unsanitary conditions as a number of them have outhouse toilets and with the ocean water coming in, it creates an unbearable stench and an unhealthy place for the residents.
He went on to say that some water would have been drained off the land as a pump system was put in place to facilitate that. The man noted that through works by the NDC in collaboration with the government, mud dams were placed just behind homes.
At the time of the visit, a number of trucks could be seen traversing the sea defence as works continued up to yesterday afternoon to repair breaches.
One woman, Sandra (only name given) who resides at the “Back Street” area of Fairfield told Stabroek News that no one from any of the agencies came through their area to see how they were affected and to render assistance. “Them don’t come down at the back here, who nah get flood at the road ah get things and who get flood nah get nothing”, the woman said as she added that the situation is hard on her as she and other neighbours are studying how they will be able to send their children to school in this situation. The woman added that she had a number of goats and one had perished.
“None government, none minister nobody never come and check we out” she said, while adding that they would have only received some cleaning supplies just prior to Stabroek News entering the area from a Civil Defence Commission (CDC) team.
Intensity
Amarnath Sukhdeo told Stabroek News that the tide came with an unexpected ferocity yesterday morning, and while they anticipated it they didn’t expect to be affected worse than the previous one a few weeks ago. “This one here this time worse than last time, the water deh high high now”, Sukhdeo said as he pointed out his flooded yard. He noted that while they would have prepared and moved their appliances and furniture higher, he did not think that it would be worse than the previous occurrence due to the ongoing works at the sea defence structure.
Later in the afternoon, a number of residents took to the streets as they stood and observed the water rising in yards and around homes. One man, who did not give his name, stated that the government could have made provisions to prevent situations like these from occurring. “Watch everybody know we under sea level here, every year them coulda set aside a set ah money to do piece piece ah de sea defence every year and use the proper contractor that know wah them ah do”, the man said as he sat on a culvert and watched on as the water rose.
It was observed that the rising water brought with it a mosquito infestation. As the water rose the Mahaicony Public Road became a sight to behold as passersby all slowed their vehicles down to take videos and photos of the affected houses and farm lands. While Stabroek News was still in the area just around 4.30 pm, the water rose swiftly and reached the median of the public road.
A team from the CDC was seen distributing hampers with cleaning materials in the area to affected residents. PPP General Secretary, Bharrat Jagdeo also made a visit to the affected communities. He told Stabroek News that he would have previously spoken with a group of rice farmers after the last high tide and hoped that some aggressive action would have been taken already. Jagdeo said that they would have called on the state to lend support to the affected farmers but noted that he would have only seen “positive statements” coming out of the issue and nothing more. In September’s spring tides, rice lands were inundated with salt water, causing severe losses.
Also on Monday, according to posts made by the Director General of the CDC, Kester Craig, the CDC would have also been monitoring overtopping at the Georgetown Seawall. In one post on social media which showed overhead video footage of the affected areas in Region 5, Craig noted that the CDC continues to improve its response with the use of technology. Another post noted that flooding as a result of overtopping was observed in communities along Region 3 and assessments will take place today.
