Risk of flooding causes major concern in Lucea as hurricane season gets under way

Western Bureau:

With weather forecasters predicting an active 2025 hurricane season, and the lack of proper drain cleaning in Lucea, the Hanover parish capital, residents are raising concerns about conditions they say are tailor-made for flooding.

The Hanover Chamber of Commerce (HCC) and the Hanover Municipal Corporation (HMC) have both also expressed concern about the state of readiness of the town to handle any unusual weather situation, with both entities pointing specifically to the Riley and Kew rivers which enter the sea to the eastern end of the Lucea harbour.

In addition to the rivers, there are also fears about the Venture Gutter, the main drain that runs through the centre of Lucea. The rivers and the gutter all fall under the responsibility of the National Works Agency (NWA).

The Riley and Kew rivers, which are usually covered with floating bamboo, have been blamed for recent cases of flooding that have impacted the town after heavy rainfall.

When The Gleaner visited the three areas highlighted on Thursday, they each appeared to be in dire need of attention, as there were no signs of recent cleaning or clearing.

“The town was flooded as late as Monday (June 16) when we had a small amount of rainfall in this area,” a businessman told The Gleaner. “The waterway under the Riley River remains blocked with bamboo, so it could not handle the additional water coming downstream, and so the river overflowed its banks and took to the main street of the town.”

According to the businessman, residents were lucky that, once the rain stopped, the floodwaters ran off very quickly as the minor gutters and drains within the town were previously cleaned.

PREVENTATIVE MEASURE

“Kudos to the team that did that work,” he said with a tinge of sarcasm, adding that he was now mounting all the stock at his business place to at least two feet above floor level as a preventative measure.

Shermaine Anderson-Gayle, president of the HCC, recently wrote to the Hanover office of the NWA, urging the agency to address the blockage under the bridges at both the Kew and Riley rivers. Lucea Mayor Sheridan Samuels has reportedly also held discussions with the NWA on the same issue.

Tamika Davis, the member of parliament for Hanover Western, told The Gleaner on Thursday that funding has been approved to clear the two bridges and the Venture Gutter.

“I have been in constant dialogue with the parish manager for the NWA, Mr Kiel Brown, and I have made some representations to him about the very same areas of concern, and I am very pleased to announce that the monies have been granted and, as early as this weekend, work will begin at the Riley Bridge to remove the bamboo,” she said. “It is only this morning that I received the call that the funds have been approved.

“It (the approximately $2 million) should be enough, at the very least, to give us a start in addressing those areas and, as soon as I leave here, I will be meeting with Mr Brown to finalise the start time as delay in this instance is going to be danger.”

In a recent interview with The Gleaner, Samuels suggested that the NWA remove and truck away the bamboo from both rivers as, in a previous instance, the bamboo blockage was just released down stream and eventually washed up on the fisherman’s beach in the Lucea town where they became more of a hazard than a relief.

editorial@gleanerjm.com