Woman determined to leave Bamboo River after Sunday’s flooding

Fearing that she could be in serious danger the next time St Thomas experiences torrential rainfall, Kimone Hunter is putting plans in place for her and her four children to vacate her home in Bamboo River.

Hunter and scores of her neighbours watched on Sunday evening as a nearby river created a channel through the community, causing extensive flooding and damage to property.

She told The Gleaner that although she grew up in the community and remembers a flooding incident many moons ago, the disaster which confronted them this time around was unlike anything else.

On Monday, the swampy ground was testament to the flooding which had occurred, and much ground could not be covered without waterboots.

“Me can’t swim, so me affi go move wid my four kids dem. Me nah go stay down here. Next thing you know, mi uncle affi send him fishing boat fi fish mi out,” Hunter said as she and other residents pointed to large concrete structures which were used to keep the river at bay.

“My father lives in Retreat and he called me to ask if I was safe, because he was watching the news. He told me to get help to move, and move very fast. Sea back we up one side, river back we up one side, and gully pon one side deh,” she continued.

“As you can see, mi did a start something fi do a likkle extension, but mi nah bother finish it because me can’t swim. On Monday, a four inches left fi di water raise go inna mi house and a four block height mi house deh pon. Imagine dat. Next time it come, mi coulda reach out a seaside and dem a send boat fi search fi my body. Mi sorry, but mi can’t stay down here any longer,” she said in evident frustration.

A fed-up Richard Thompson explained how he and others were kept busy washing their homes clean of mud. He acknowledged the imminent danger he will find himself in if the island experiences more rains soon. A fix to the community’s woes, he said, would be to erect solid but temporary structures that would keep the river on its course.

“This is the third time now from September. People lose settee and water go down inna dem fridge, because a nuh everything you can lift and put pon bed. As far as me see it, it come in like the authorities a wait fi couple people drown off. Give us at least a temporary solution,” he pleaded.

One man joined the call for restoring structures to keep the river at bay.

“Di river have access fi do itself a way in a di community,” he said. “If dem cya gi we di groyne, we woulda take couple beams fi shub up the banking until them can come up with a solution fi save the community.”

Another resident said that it would have been more devastating if the flooding had occurred in the dead of night, or if the rain had fallen for another half an hour.

jason.cross@gleanerjm.com