Waterford residents plead for cleaning of drains amid flooding threat
Published:Monday | June 10, 2024 | 12:06 AMRuddy Mathison/Gleaner Writer
Residents of Waterford in Portmore, St Catherine, are growing increasingly anxious as continuous rainfall threatens to cause significant flooding in their community. The root of the problem, they assert, lies in the neglect of a major drain that channels stormwater from interior drains to the sea.
The residents report that the major drain has not been maintained for an extended period, resulting in a blockage at its mouth. This obstruction, they warn, could lead to severe flooding if rainfall persists, especially during the hurricane season.
Chris, a long-standing resident, in expressing his frustration, said: “It don’t make sense them clean the little drain dem that empty out in the Dyke Road gully and nothing done to it. We want it clean urgently because if we get any rainfall during the hurricane season, we will have to use boat to get out of our houses.”
Wayne Sharpe echoed this sentiment, making a direct plea to the relevant authorities.
“We had some rain in the last couple of days and the water start to flow over,” said Sharpe. “We need some assistance urgently; we can’t wait for people to be affected before something is done.”
The condition of the gully is also impacting Waterford High School.
Robert Campbell noted, “The gully is bad near the bottom of the Waterford High School, where a section of the school compound has caved in. In a couple years from now, the school will face a more serious problem, because the whole of the bank near the gully a cave over because the gully want to be sought out.”
Waterford Councillor Fenley Douglas informed The Gleaner that while the municipal corporation has started cleaning the interior drains that feed into the Dyke Road gully, the uncleaned state of the main drain has already caused backflows, exacerbating residents’ fears.
“The Dyke Road gully needs to be cleaned,” Douglas emphasised. “This is about the third time I am making a public appeal to the National Works Agency (NWA) and the powers that be to clean and repair the Dyke Road gully. As it is now, 3,725 homes in Waterford are at risk as a result of no maintenance of this gully.”
Prime Minister Andrew Holness, during his contribution to the 2024-25 Budget Debate, announced a sum of $2.5 billion earmarked for cleaning major gullies, drains, and roadways across Jamaica. Despite this, Douglas has seen no action taken on the Dyke Road gully.
“Since I made the last appeal a few months ago for attention to be given to the drain, nothing has happened. I also made an appeal about two weeks ago at a consultation meeting ,where representatives from the NWA were present, and was told that something would be done; but I am saying it should be done now,” Douglas stated.
Douglas also expressed concern about the ongoing erosion at Waterford High School, which has severely restricted student movement. He stressed the need for a regular cleaning regime to prevent such issues.
Efforts to get a response from the NWA proved futile.