Family’s house on brink of collapse

Recent heavy rains took a toll on houses in flood-prone districts, but those on higher ground were not immune to the effects. At Caratal Road, Gasparillo, 40-year-old Separion Guy’s home was almost carried away when a large portion of the land slipped away.

He has since taken his wife and their four children to a relative’s home in Marabella, because the wooden house is on the brink of collapse.

Guy told Newsday, heavy rainfall was experienced from October 18 (Divali day) and, on October 22, he and his 26-year-old wife Phyllis Daniel were asleep with their children when they were awakened by a crashing sound.

“The hog plum tree fell onto our kitchen and demolished it completely,” Guy said. His children are 13, 11, six and three years old.

The next morning, the family was unable to step outside the back of their house because the land had caved in and left a precipice. The back pillars of the house are partially unearthed and Guy fears the house would collapse if more rains come.

Guy told Newsday he and his family have been split apart because his brother, with whom he is living in Marabella, cannot accommodate everyone. His 11-year-old daughter, who is expecting to write the Secondary Entrance Assessment exam next year, is staying with another relative. Guy is appealing for help to rebuild his house.