David Papannah

Seventy-five per cent of families from the Kwakwani Waterfront, Region 10, have been forced to evacuate their homes in the Berbice River due to extreme flooding.

Photos by Orlando Charles Frustration continued to grow yesterday among farmers of Grass Hook and Big Biaboo, Mahaica River, as floodwater continues to rise, threatening the survival of their remaining crops and livestock.

Persons affected by flooding are asked to contact the CDC on telephone number 226-1027 or 600-7500 (WhatsApp).

Four years after a study found that villagers of Parabara, in the Deep South Rupununi, had high levels of mercury exposure, they still remain in the dark about the significance of the discovery, with many going about their lives as they always have.

With water levels reaching as high as 8 feet at Kwakwani on the Berbice River and many other flooded communities in Region 10, regional authorities are seeking to secure assistance for affected residents, including food and cleaning supplies.

Extensive rainfall, which has resulted in overflowing rivers, has led to the inundation of some communities, farmlands and roads in the Deep South Rupununi and parts of Lethem, in Region Nine.

Signs of pollution near Bartica’s Golden Beach have spurred some residents to call on authorities to immediately halt the construction of a wharf by Sir’s Gas Station, which they believe will make matters worse.

The clearing of mangroves by Tristar Incorporated at Malgre Tout/Versailles, West Bank Demerara, has exceeded the terms under which it was granted permission to begin work to construct a shore base facility, according to Chairman of Guyana’s Sea Defence Board Brigadier (ret’d) Gary Beaton.

The construction of a shore base facility at Malgre Tout/Versailles, West Demerara, has seen a substantial amount of mangroves being cleared along the shoreline earmarked for the project and residents are now worried that it could leave them vulnerable to flooding.

Over a hundred residents of Little Diamond, East Bank Demerara are counting their losses from flash flooding, which has been blamed on the negligence of an excavator operator working on a newly-constructed sluice.

It’s just past noon and the sound of chisels and hammers hitting against each other emanates from 150 feet below the top of Mazoa.

Kameel Calistro, a mother of two of Swan, Kuru Kururu, Soesdyke/Linden Highway was fatally stabbed during the wee hours of yesterday after being caught in the middle of a confrontation between two others.

Recognising that COVID-19 guidelines were not being observed at a T20 softball competition at the Everest Cricket Club yesterday, President Irfaan Ali chided organisers and representatives of the club.

Declaring the approval last year of two new trawler licences in the seabob operation as an “act of corruption” under the Ministry of Agriculture, Chairman of A New and United Guyana (ANUG), Timothy Jonas says every effort should have already been made to correct the transgression given its implications for the trade.

Admitting that it blundered on critical aspects of the petroleum sector, the opposition yesterday offered support to the government for a united stand in dealing with ExxonMobil to correct deficiencies and it also launched a scorching attack on plans for a gas to shore project at Wales.

Citing low bookings for travel and a high number of cancellations by passengers on the Guyana to United States route, rebranded Eastern Airlines yesterday announced that it was temporarily suspending flights on the route, leaving the jobs of close to 150 in limbo.

Vishnu Panday, the point person for the government’s resuscitation plan for the Skeldon sugar estate, says he resigned as he was unable to work with GuySuCo’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sasenarine Singh and that they share opposing views on the way forward.

The identity of the holder of the two controversial trawling licences continues to be a mystery, as fisher folk here and in neighbouring Trinidad are unacquainted with the name Rampersaud Sookhdeo, the man purported to have had operations in the twin-island republic, according to the Ministry of Agriculture  President of the Carli Bay Fishing Association, and member of Fisherman and Friends of the Sea, Imtiaz Khan, who has been a part of the fishing industry for years in Trinidad and Tobago, yesterday told Stabroek News that they are unfamiliar with the name of the individual and the name of the operations.

After two months of defiance, the Ministry of Agriculture yesterday finally released the name of the owner of two trawling licences, the issuing of which had roiled the industry and raised questions about transparency.