Upper Bournes Road residents still fear losing homes

UPPER BOURNES ROAD residents had their fears realised after a deluge of water from rains on Tuesday last week flooded the area, damaging property and leaving silt and other debris behind. The flash flood gave life to concerns of people in the area over a multi-million-dollar development in Fort George which in June was at the centre of concerns over landslides in the area.

Residents of Ross Lands told Newsday a literal river flowed down their street as retention ponds used by the construction site broke during heavy rainfall on Tuesday.

“The street was a river,” said one resident to Newsday during a visit to the area.

Residents said the construction site has three retention pools which collect run-off water, silt, sand and other debris, which would usually wash down the hill whenever it rained, because of the removal of trees and top soil from the hill for construction.

“But like they didn’t empty them,” said the resident.

CCTV footage from a nearby mini-mart showed that the flash flood rolled down the hill in the space of a minute and endured until the rains stopped. The water flowed into the yards of several residents in the area, causing damage to electronics and appliances, and leaving behind mounds of silt and debris.

Another resident, Joel Demas, said he fell asleep moments before the rain came down, and was shocked when he was awakened to see that a river was flowing through his yard.

“My son woke me up and told me about the water. When I got up, I was so confused that I grabbed a rake,” Demas said.

“My family is traumatised still. We are afraid that rain may fall overnight. This disaster was caused by only 15 minutes of rain. Overnight rainfall sometimes persists for more than three hours.”

Residents told Newsday the construction company overseeing the project, Home Solutions Ltd, promised – albeit  orally – that they would be compensated for any losses.

But water woes were not the only problems the residents complained about when Newsday visited. One resident, 56-year-old Lilly Mc Carthy, complained that she was also affected by the noise from construction work, but the fence in her back yard was also destroyed.

“We consult with them just before they started. We brought our concerns to them but they are full of just talk, they are not about action.

“My fence came down when they were clearing some bamboo. If they fix back my fence then I would be safe, but I am fed up.

“And don’t talk about the noise: 5.15 am they starting with the noise. In the consultation they said it would be from 7 am to 4 pm. I know they have a job to do, but they have to think of the residents also.”

Newsday visited the area in June when residents first expressed fears about the construction site, known as The View, and the possibility of a massive landslide in the area.

The land is owned by Guardian Holdings. When the project is completed, apartments are expected to cost between $1.7 and $2 million in the first phase.

In June residents expressed concern that all the vegetation had been removed, exposing the top soil to heavy rains which could cause flooding and landslides.

Newsday was given a tour of the  site and the company had constructed retaining walls to stop material ending up in the homes of nearby residents.

Officials from Home Solutions said the rains had “temporarily overwhelmed” one of the retention pools on the site causing the flash flood.

“Immediately after the event occurred, we mobilised our clean-up crew, that included heavy equipment and water trucks, and worked continually till midnight to remove all of the debris from the affected areas, which has been completed,” said representative of the company Ronald Ammon in an e-mail to Newsday.

“We are also working with the affected residents to provide additional assistance and support where necessary. The EMA (Environmental Management Agency) has been informed of this situation and we will re-examine the location of this pond together with our drainage engineer, to ensure that this event is not repeated.”

Ammon added that work hours are from 7am to 4 pm, but there were instances where work occurred beyond that time. Some operations were done early to counter delays in the project.

“We will continue to work with the residents to resolve their concerns.”