Major Trelawny corridor reopens - Parish council says drain cleaning averted massive flooding

Christopher Thomas, Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU: Mayor of Falmouth Colin Gager says drain-cleaning exercises undertaken by the parish council averted widescale flooding in the parish.

Sections of Trelawny were flooded and some roads rendered impassable due to flood waters and debris as a result of Tropical Storm Nicole.

"All councillors did extensive drain cleaning, and that helped to ease the problem so water could flow freely," Gager told The Gleaner.

"None of the parish council drains were affected or hindered the flow of water. I think a good job was done there throughout all nine divisions," Gager added.

Meanwhile, the roadway between Wakefield and Falmouth, Trelawny, which was blocked by water since Tuesday when Tropical Storm Nicole lashed the island, has been cleared.

"The only thing now is rain. There's nobody in distress at this time and the road is clear," Corporal Wayne Wallace, a community safety officer attached to the Trelawny Police Division, told The Gleaner yesterday afternoon.

through a cane field

The roadway between Wakefield and Falmouth, via Bounty Hall, had been blocked. Dionne Lewis, disaster coordinator for the parish of Trelawny, said vehicular traffic had to be diverted through a cane field as the main thoroughfare was impassable.

"It is still raining so I don't know if it (the road) will be impassable again," she added. On Thursday, Lewis said that residents had to travel through Good Hope, in order to access Falmouth. She also said the road between Wakefield and the Muschett High School was blocked.

"We're just waiting for the water to recede and then we're going to do an assessment," she explained. "We've placed the shelter managers on alert, but so far no shelter is open."