‘We like dogs in the back here’

East Trinidad was one of the hardest hit areas when the country experienced one of the worst floods in decades just over two weeks ago.

Hundreds of families suffered many losses and many are still dealing with the trauma of seeing their homes and personal belongings washed away and torn apart by rising floodwaters on October 19.

One such family is the Williams family who live in several small houses on one piece of land at Riley Land Settlement, a stone’s throw from the North Oropouche River. The family consists four generations.

While other affected residents have been receiving assistance from the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation (SGRC), it seems the Williams family has been forgotten.

The family had to be evacuated by soldiers on the night of the flood when waters rose forcing them to seek shelter in the homes of relatives who built their houses high off the ground. The water was already up to their necks when they were rescued.

Kenrick Pierre said since the flood no one came to assist them, not even with food, he told Sunday Newsday last Friday.

“We like dogs living in the back here. The councillor is doing nothing for us, everything is about politics. When we asked for help they say we have high house so we can’t get help. The water came up to the second floor.

“Right now the children unable to go to school because the road full of mud and there are no drains for the water to run off. We have outside toilets and they haven’t even come to sanitise the place. The children getting all kinda rash and diarrhoea. The garbage truck refusing to come and pick up our trash saying is is too much garbage. He (garbage collector) will just take up a a couple of bags and leave the rest,” Pierre said.

Kizzy Williams, a mother of five, with the oldest being ten and the youngest a five-month-old girl, said the family was “just trying to survive”.

“I am living here 24 years now and I accustomed to seeing flood, but never anything like this. This is the first time the river came up so high. We just trying to survive right now because nobody is helping us. They saying we is PNM so we can’t get help.”

SGRC chairman Martin Terry Rondon assured he has done all he can to help the family.

“That is the family I have been trying to help. People only coming here and it’s ‘gimmee, gimmee’. Three and four people from the same family coming for hampers and mattresses nearly every day and the people who need it can’t get it,” he said when Sunday Newsday stopped by his office.

Rondon immediately ordered five mattresses, ten blankets and hampers be taken immediately to the family, along with disinfectants and sanitisers.

He said he has received numerous donations from relatives of affected families living abroad. However, he is asking all good Samaritans to hold up on foodstuff, water and clothing.

“Right now we are concentrating on rebuilding and repairing. A lot of people have damage to their homes, some of their walls have fallen, so if people want to donate a bag of cement or some gravel, we will be thankful,” he said.

Families on Cooperative Street were still awaiting assistance.

Businessman Videsh Persad sustained over $60,000 worth of loss when his fruit and vegetable stand was submerged under the floodwaters.

“I have been living here all my life, 31 years, and never saw anything like this. This is how I support my family and I have a mortgage to pay. I had an entire freezer filled with pre-cut green mango for Divali but I had to dump all,” he said.

“Everything happened so fast, within ten minutes the whole place was completely flooded downstairs. There wasn’t any time to save anything. I will just have to move on. Nobody could have stopped this. Like they say, time heals and I will have to take it one day at a time.”