Heavy rains caused flash flooding in several parts of the country yesterday. Among the hardest hit areas was Debe in south Trinidad where several residents reported that their homes were flood out.
At Chester Street, where homeowners were faced with major clean ups after muddy water and slush flooded their homes, one frustrated resident blocked the road with two cars.
“They driving hard and the water going in people place,” he said.
The resident moved the cars out of the way only after the water in front his home began receding.
At nearby Debe Trace, residents blamed the flood on land development in the area. There were also reports of flooding along the M2 Ring Road.
Doodnath Sieunarine, 57, who lives on Chester Street, put on rubber boots to wade through his flooded living room as he attempted to bail out water.
“It look like the flooding getting worse. When it rains that is it, the road is a river because there is nowhere for the water to get out,” he said.
“Well everything inside my house wet up again. My couch damage, my freezer, my washing machine all of that might conk out.”
Another resident Omraj Boodhai, a pudding vendor, said his kitchen was flooded.
“I can’t work.The water come up about 10.30 am. The water reach knee high sometimes. We just frustrated. Every time the water raising higher and higher. Since the land developers cutting the hill the slush fulling up the drain and the water have nowhere to go.”
Meera Boodhai, 67, who lives alone and has a prosthetic leg, said she would have to depend on her neighbours to help her clean up when the water recedes.
Oropouche East MP Roodal Moonilal said he was aware of the situation and had visited the area previously.
“We have tried to do remedial work, a pond was created but is not sufficient. What is required is a large box drain that has to run through private property and we need permission from the owner, who as to give up one of two feet of land, which we have not obtained,” he said.
Moonilal said another issue that the Penal/Debe Regional Corporation did not have enough funds to do the project. He said he would be seeking a meeting with four land developers on Tuesday in an attempt to reach an amicable solution.
Flooding was also in downtown Port-of-Spain, as well as parts of Westmoorings and Diego Martin.
Jerry David, disaster management co-ordinator for the Diego Martin Regional Corporation, said a disaster and emergency response team was on the ground doing clean ups in affected areas. He said the Corporation had received calls for help from property owners
Meteorologist Arnold Ramgoolam said the flooding was caused a combination of several factors including a surface trough and strong day time heating, followed by heavy showers and thundershowers concentrated mainly in the Port-of-Spain area.
—Additional reporting by Charles Kong Soo