Although a source of great help, residents say river can ‘turn on you, too’

The Oaks River, located in the northern Clarendon community of Rock River, is a source of great help for residents and also one that affords them many favourite pastimes, but as Rosetta and her husband Samuel Taylor will tell you, it can also turn on you.

With water a challenge, it is the norm for her to wash clothes by the river; and for her, there is nothing like the fragrance from the sun-dried clothes on the rocks by the riverside.

In sharing her tales with The Gleaner, she recalled that one Saturday while carrying out her usual chores, she was suddenly alerted to danger.

“Me alone was by the river washing, and mi mean sey mi carry clothes enuh, a lot of clothes, when all of a sudden, mi si di water a expand and a lot of bush coming down,” she related.

She said the dirty water coming down alerted her to the fact that the river was overflowing.

“Dry, dry skies, bright sunshine, and just like dat; mi haffi mikase (make haste) and grab up every ting, luckily smady come on and help me,” she said, sharing that hadn’t she gotten out of the way quickly, not only would she have lost all her clothes, but her life as well.

For her husband Samuel, who grew up swimming in the river, it has always been a friend to him until one night when it rained very hard.

“Mi come een Saturday night pon Beverley’s bus, the rain was falling and mi sey mi nah go a nuh bush tonight, it too late…” His words proved to be prophetic, as it rained all night, in the morning, when he went to the bush, he saw that his mule had drowned in the river which overflowed its banks.

Today, Samuel said things have changed drastically where both the Rio Minho and Oaks rivers are concerned.

“A lot of fishes used to be in the river. You could leave and go river to fish and have meal for the entire family, no one damaged the river in those days,” he said, pointing out that the shrimps that can now be found in the river are more like “Rastaman” now.

Stating that the colours are black, green, red and gold, he said the shrimps can live in the refrigerator for up to four days. He was also bewildered about the type of shrimp, which he describes as “big and coarse”.

Unlike the original shrimps, which he said used to give a ‘goat flavour’, these Rasta shrimps’ don’t have any flavour, he claimed.

Samuel said although you will find persons still going to the river to fish, it is far from its glory days, and, most times, doesn’t yield a good catch for the family.

Another native from the community, who only wants to be referred to as ‘Ryan’, said many outsiders are tempted by the river and plan picnics, which most times end in tragedy.

“Some people just come and see the good water and waan jump inna it, and they plan picnics. Then you have people who want to jump in the water, not realising that there are some deep holes in it,” he shared, adding that most persons who drown in the river are not from the community.

“This river (Rio Minho) take life, too; but we that born here, we know how to take precaution,” he shared, even as he had words of warning for ‘outsiders’.

“If you can swim when you see the water pass the knee, or at least the belly button, nuh badda wid it.”

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