Floods leave Gasparillo residents stranded for hours

RISING Floods on Sunday left villagers of Charles Street North in Gasparillo stranded for hours after heavy rains.

Residents were reportedly unable to leave their homes for close to three hours as the floodwaters continued to surround their homes.

Cars were almost covered by the floodwaters and furniture and appliances were seen floating.

Fearful residents said they were forced to climb to higher ground as they said the waters continued to rise.

One resident Kizzie Huggins told Newsday that only after 6 pm the waters began to subside.

Huggins who lives with her parents said it was one of the scariest ordeals anyone could encounter.

She said in 2010 the community faced similar floods however it was worse that year. Huggins recalled that it started to rain today at 3 pm then within 45 minutes the enter streets were a river.

“There was flood everywhere and no one could leave their homes. We were stranded for hours and just kept praying for the best.”

Huggins said that for years the residents have made complains to the Couva/ Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation about the cleaning and dredging of the river.

“We are really tired and fed up of complaining. Since the last several flooding in 2010 after that nothing was done and today the residents have suffered more losses.”

Up to late yesterday night, the residents were cleaning mud and debris from their homes.

There were also respots of flooding along the Solomon Hochoy Highway in Claxton Bay today.