Portland residents marooned in St Thomas walk home after spending night in their cars

Some Portland residents who spent the night in their vehicles after being trapped by floodwaters in Golden Grove, St Thomas decided to head home on foot this afternoon as the rain subsided.

Though dangerous, and with residents saying the water is infested with crocodiles, the individuals say they were more willing to take that risk than spend another night in their cars.

Verona Reid is visiting Jamaica for her yearly vacation and was coming from the airport to go home in Manchioneal in Portland when she became marooned in the rural town. 

Describing the night as uncomfortable with no food and very little rest, she said she was determined to go home.

"I have to walk through this water, I don't even know my way. I have to pay somebody now to get me through and call somebody from the other side to get me a taxi or something because I'm not prepared to stay another night,” she said. 

"We had to sleep in the car, and it's a little car with three people sleeping in it, no food no drink, nothing at all, and then when we wake up in the morning the water get worse," she added. 

But, Tiffany Sobah, who was travelling home to Portland with her 4-year-old daughter, said she did not have that option. 

"It was scary in the sense that I have my child here with me this time, but this is my fourth time being trapped in Golden Grove," she said. 

"When it became scary was when the fire truck came in the night and they said the water covered the wheels of the truck and they're suggesting that all of us stay put here. And then they start to tell us how many crocodiles they saw in the water trying to pull out other vehicles," she added.

Everton Harris was heading home with his wife from his daughter's graduation at the Caribbean Maritime University when he got stuck due to the floodwaters.

The police sergeant said he felt abandoned by political representatives during the predicament.

"We expected more from the representative cause this is a disaster, we haven't seen any representative, nobody come to say...even with a bottle of water, nobody came to assist us," he said.

The town is between two rivers, the Plantain Garden River and the Golden Grove River, which makes it prone to flooding when it rains, Ian Gallab, a resident, told The Gleaner.

However, he said this can be minimised with more drain cleaning. 

"The gullies nuh keep clean. The rivers bring the water from up in the hills, so the gullies keep back the water, but through it nah keep clean, so the water overflow pon di road," he said.

However, Member of Parliament for Eastern St Thomas Dr Michelle Charles, who eventually came on site, told The Gleaner that drain cleaning occurred in June.

- Sashana Small

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