Flood victims need our support

THE EDITOR: I was amazed as I viewed video footage of people in St Helena on their roof top in order to safe guard themselves from being washed away by flood waters. Now this is only one described area. While it is customary to have serious flooding in the rainy season the extra rainfall within the last few days made matters even worse.

There is nothing like a safe place for areas that never knew flooding before, overnight they are also having their share. Let us face it, governments come and governments go, but this flooding problem remains the same. We have not seen any tangible improvement.

My heart goes out to those people who literally had to brace every year for this threat. Some of them lost everything from household appliances to crops and live stock. Not until you become a victim can you really feel the full impact of this type of disaster. I wonder how much more can be done concerning the flooding problem.

But we need to keep working at it until we bring about a tangible solution. My plea is to all citizens and organisations including religious bodies to get involved. The very same zeal and enthusiasm displayed for our Caribbean neighbours during their times of disaster must be replicated at home.

I appeal to all those who are key at this time, for example the ODPM, to be always on the alert with manpower and machinery at the ready to assist. I firmly believe if we all pull together, the blow can be made softer.

Arnold Gopeesingh, SAN JUAN