[www.inewsguyana.com] – As residents in Georgetown and along the Coastal areas battle the flood waters due to heavy rains, two of City Hall pumps have been hauled in for repairs.
Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy told reporters at a press conference on Wednesday, November 27 that the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) is assisting with the repairs.
However, Ramsammy could not say when the pumps would be fixed. The two broken city pumps are located at the Lamaha Canal and Kingston.
“There is high tide and those pumps are critical,” Ramsammy said.
The municipality is responsible for the operation of seven pumps in the city, while the Agriculture Ministry oversees the operation of the pumps at Liliendaal and Kitty.
Additionally, the pump in Diamond, East Bank Demerara is also not working and according to Ramsammy, that pump will be back in operation within the next 24 hours.
Meanwhile, the Agriculture Minister also lamented the deplorable garbage situation in the city, which he said is responsible for the pumps being broken.
As it relates to the continuous rain, Dr. Ramsammy said that it was the most rain experienced since 1892 within the six hour period.
“Georgetown recorded 128.9 mm of rain during the six hour period of rain. That amount of rain would have caused flash flooding,” the Agriculture Minister explained. Rainfall was experienced in regions 2, 3 ,4 and 5. The weather, Dr. Ramsammy said is expected to clear up within the next 12 hours.
