Flood affected Uitvlugt residents get relief

March 3, 2018

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DPI, GUYANA, Saturday, March 03, 2018

Over 300 flood affected households in the Uitvlugt community on the West Coast Demerara (WCD) today received cleaning supplies to safeguard themselves against any serious water borne diseases and other hazards.

Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge (right) accompanied by Deputy Director General of the CDC, Lieutenant Colonel, Kester Craig (centre) and Regional Executive Officer, Dennis Jaikaran (left) during his walkabout in the community.

Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge visited the area today and distributed bleach and jeyes fluid among other supplies to the residents.

Speaking with the Department of Public Information (DPI), the Minister noted the severe damage to the residents’ properties and explained that the collaborative effort being undertaken by the Civil Defence Commission (CDC), the Region Three Administration and the Government Ministries and Agencies is geared at providing the necessary assistance.

“I’ve seen a lot of people with their beds, furniture and bedding inundated and what the CDC has done is to provide some material to help to reduce the chances of infections and the like. That’s going to be a continuous process…they have enough for the affected families at the moment. At the same time we’re seeing some families with children with all their books damaged and we will try and see what can be done to render them assistance there as well,” Minister Greenidge explained.

High tides overtopped sections of the West Demerara seawall yesterday, inundating the communities of Leonora, Stewartville and Uitvlugt. Several portions of the upper part of the Uitvlugt seawall’s concrete crest broke under the pressure of the above normal tides, resulting in immense flooding in the area. “They (engineers) are trying to reinforce the wall from the other side, secondly they are trying to keep the drains flowing cause that’s a big thing and a problem that the community has to help us with. If they block the drains then the water can’t come off”, Minister Greenidge told DPI.

This resident received her cleaning supplies.

According to the Minister, while efforts are underway to minimize the problem for the medium-term, going forward, the government will assess long-term solutions that will prevent such disasters from reoccurring in Guyana at large.

Meanwhile, Deputy Director General of the CDC, Lieutenant Colonel, Kester Craig told DPI that the sanitation supplies will aid the residents in cleaning up the community, while protecting them from threats such as insects and snakes.

The CDC which is the body which is responsible for disaster management in Guyana has played a critical role since the incident occurred . The Commission along with assistance from the other stakeholders has since set up two shelters at the Uitvlugt Estate Community Centre and the Uitvlugt Secondary School to house the residents affected by the flooding.

Craig said that to date, the Uitvlugt Secondary School shelter has a total of 41 persons who receive periodic health visits, while the Community Centre shelter has four persons.

“We’re working closely with the Regional Administration, Ministry of Public Health, Ministry of Communities, Ministry of Public Infrastructure and we’ve gotten significant support from the Guyana Police Force, who are patrolling the community and providing transportation for us for the relief distribution,” Craig underlined.