Latest update April 23rd, 2024 12:59 AM
Jun 19, 2018 News
Officials attached to Regional Democratic Council of Region Three are continuing their assessment of the damage caused by a high tide which led to flooding in several sections of Sans Souci, Wakenaam, Essequibo Islands, over the weekend.
Residents were sent into a state of panic early Sunday morning after unusually high tides broke through a section of a temporary sea defence, sending water from the Essequibo River rushing into homes.
The breach left residents of Wakenaam wading in knee-deep water and assessing their losses, which includes millions in livestock and household appliances.
While spring tides are being blamed for the breach, fingers are also pointed at a contractor who worked on the sea defence in the area.
During an interview with Kaieteur News yesterday, Chief Sea and River Defence Officer attached to the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, (MPI) Kevin Samad, confirmed that initial investigations revealed that the occurrence was as a result of negligence on the part of the river defence contractor who was conducting works in the area.
According to Samad, a team from the Ministry is on the ground continuing work to rectify the situation. Samad explained that the contractor was duty bound to ensure that the site was adequately secured by the end of the day, but he failed to do so.
Samad noted, however, that due to combined efforts on the ground, the contractor has since fortified the area.
“We would like to assure residents that there would not be a recurrence of such a scenario,” he said, adding that a detailed assessment of the flooded areas is continuing.
Reports reaching this publication indicated that the breach occurred at around 05:30 hrs on Sunday.
Following the breach, the small island of about 3,200 residents became vulnerable to the spring tides. According to residents, water from the river flooded the small farming community within minutes, destroying everything from household appliances to livestock.
Some residents said the water rose to some three to four feet. Others claimed that they were affected by water as deep as six feet. It is believed that the water remained at a high level for about five hours before receding.
Some residents told Kaieteur News that the water rose so quickly that they were unable to save anything. Based on reports, refrigerators, washing machines and cupboards were destroyed.
Director General (ag) of the Civil Defence Commission (CDC), Lt. Col. Kester Craig, Wakenaam NDC Chairman Sheikh Ahmad and Regional Executive Officer of Region Three, Dennis Jaikaran, are in the villages assessing the state of affairs.
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