Woodland flooding subsides

As the floodwater in Woodland continued to subside on Thursday and residents continued cleaning up their homes, they were also on the lookout for animals – living or dead.

At Pluck Road in La Fortune, residents caught a caiman about five feet long around midday. Baldath Mootilal and his neighbours said they saw “at least” five caimans in the murky water on Wednesday night.

Mootilal, 65, said it was the third he had caught in his property for the year so far. He believed itwas trying to get to a nearby pond to eat his duck, as the caimans usually do.

“It was climbing the galvanised fence to get inside when some fellas saw it today. We hit it with a sledgehammer. It is playing dead,” Mootilal said.

“For the past few days, we have been cleaning, and we are still cleaning, because the downstairs was flooded.

"On top of that, we have no water in the pipe for a few days. So we are using water from the tank and are unsure when we would get water in the line.”

The Bansgopaul family said cleaning had been non-stop, and they had seen many snakes in the floodwater.

“As fast as the water rises, we pump it out, because the slush and mud can be more difficult to remove afterward. In the last five to six years, the flooding had worsened drastically. We keep investing, but the water seeps through concrete year after year. The house foundation is getting weak,” a relative said.

He attributed the flooding to the construction of the Solomon Hochoy Highway extension, saying there were no adequate drainage systems. He added that watercourses as well as the floodgates were not properly maintained.

Devika Samsundar added when trucks pass through the floods, water gushes into the property, causing further damage. She said the movement destroyed her washing machine, which stopped working after it fell to the ground.

Businessman Sulyman Baig complained that the nearby South Oropouche River bank needs to be properly fixed.

“Since Sunday, we were under water, and it only started going down last night. The (cooking) gas tanks fell to the ground due to heavy vehicles passing through the water,” Baig said.

Michelle Madhai and relatives were seen distributing food and drinks to affected residents on a van. Madhai, of Madhai Supermarket along Pluck Road, gave out about 50 boxes on Wednesday and 75 on Thursday. It was their way of giving back to the community. They started the drive about five years ago.

The business was not flooded. However, sales have been affected as people cannot get to and from the supermarket.

“We know while people are cleaning, they would be glad to get something to eat. Some people have nowhere to cook. We are trying to give what we can,” Madhai said.

On Wednesday, Oropouche West MP Davendranath Tancoo accused the Government of neglect and “geographical discrimination.”

He said the floodgates in the area were closed when they should have been opened during low tide to allow water to run off.

He said “concerned residents” manually open those floodgates.

Tancoo added that the water from three main rivers backed up for several miles, creating an unnatural dam and causing extensive flooding in Woodland, Penal, and surrounding areas.