Sussex Street pump provides relief to Albouystown
DPI, Guyana, Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Residents of the Albouystown and surrounding communities are benefitting from the installation of a drainage pump aimed at reducing the risk of flooding in the community.
This was highlighted during a tour of the area by the Mayor of Georgetown Pandit Ubraj Narine and a team, on Wednesday afternoon.
“We (Mayor and City Council) collaborated with the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) to get the drainage system in order which under the past government had been in chaos…we have asked for the slabs to be raised so we can have an excavator come to clean the main canal,” he explained to the Department of Public Information.
Going forward, plans are in place to ensure the pump is monitored and maintained daily. A necessary step for the council as it will ensure that areas like Charlestown, West and South Ruimveldt among others will be protected.
Mayor Narine is also encouraging other stakeholders to come on board and help with the installation of grills to prevent solid waste from passing through and possibly damaging the pump.
In 2017, Minister of Finance Hon. Winston Jordan signed an $833.2 Million ($US4M) Line of Credit (LOC) with the Export-Import (EXIM) Bank of India to acquire 14 mobile and fixed water pumps. In addition to procuring and installing the pumps, the signed agreement also caters for the provision of associated spares and institutional strengthening related to the use and maintenance of the equipment.
The contract was subsequently awarded to India-based Apollo International Limited (AIL) which had submitted a $750Billion (US$3.6M) bid for the project. The project which falls under NDIA includes the design, supply, installation and commissioning of nine fixed and five mobile high-capacity pumps and associated structures and equipment.
The five mobile pumps will provide drainage to Georgetown and its environs including La Penitence South, Cummings Canal, Church Street, Sussex Street and South Ruimveldt. These mobile drainage pumps will be assigned to various sites close to existing sluices within the city and their surrounding areas. It will also be deployed to other areas to alleviate flooding whenever necessary.
The acquisition of the pumps will not only bring relief to residents but farmers whose economic activities are usually disrupted by flooding caused by intensive rainfall and overtopping of the sea defence. They will provide flood relief to approximately 25,000 acres of agricultural and residential lands.
Echoing the Mayor’s sentiments, Pump Operator Clifford Judea said that the grills will help in the council’s effort noting that the current pump is much stronger and gets the job done effectively.
“Our previous pump would suck up almost every bit of debris that passed, and with the propellors being located at the bottom, these items would get caught in the blades and eventually damaged the pump. With this new pump, we are getting good work from it, ” Judea explained.
It was also highlighted by Mayor Narine, that a much larger pump has also been installed at the Munshewar Wharf.