Roofs blown off as South hit by heavy rain and floodingBy Odette Loney Sunday, August 9 2009
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The driver of this vehicle takes the chance to drive through heavy flood waters along the Claxton Bay old road yesterday....
Heavy rains and strong winds ripped off the roofs of about eight houses in Mahabalsingh Branch Trace, Navet Village, Rio Claro on Friday evening, affecting about 45 persons — adults and children.
While these families were being displaced, residents at Inverness Road, Princes Town also suffered damage to their properties because of similar conditions. Late yesterday evening, residents from other areas in south Trinidad were also reporting rising flood water following heavy rain on Friday night and early yesterday morning.
Anola Springle, 19, her common-law husband Gabriel Grazette, 30, and their two children Jaheem, two, and Mickel, three, had to flee their ground floor apartment at Victoria Village, Cross Crossing yesterday evening after rising flood waters entered their home. Several other residents from the same area were also affected. Late yesterday, Barrackpore, Penal and Oropouche residents also reported rising flood waters were threatening to invade their houses.
Areas such as Pranz Gardens Claxton Bay, Tarouba and Gasparillo were experiencing some degree of flooding but residents say it was not like previous occasions.
Nadia Gookul, 32, of New Settlement Tarouba, Marabella, said that flood water started to rise at about 12.30 pm yesterday. She said there was murky water gushing out of a box drain at the side of her house, flooding the area.
She said the flooding by her is just a repeat of previous occasions when there is heavy rainfall and although she made several complaints to the Member of Parliament for the area, Christine Kangaloo, nothing has been done to remedy the situation.
“Now that the flood waters are rising, my yard is a muddy mess again. It is filled with garbage and insects are crawling everywhere. All of my plants are washed away,” said Gookul.
Another Tarouba resident, Marla Kalicheran, 40, said that she lost her household items and sewing machine as a result of the perennial flooding in the area and she has received no compensation for her loss. “There is flooding around this time, every year, and no one is doing anything about our plight,” said Kalicheran.
Claxton Bay police say yesterday’s flood waters caused a traffic pile up near Pranz Gardens on the Southern Main Road and although vehicular traffic was not entirely cut off, vehicles heading to central and south Trinidad were forced to move slowly through the rising water.
Disaster Coordinator for the Disaster Management Unit of the Mayaro Regional Corporation, Ainsley Hosein, noted that the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (TTEC) had to disconnect the power supply in the area temporarily in order to fix downed lines. Hosein said, “We gave them tarpaulins, lanterns, mattresses and the Ministry of Social Development is providing hampers.”
Operations Manager for the Office Of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM), Donna Pierre, said that site coordinators are currently assessing the extent of the damage in affected areas.
