By Michael McLean, Gleaner WriterSANTA CRUZ, St. Elizabeth:
THE OFFICE of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) has issued an order for residents living in the flood-prone community of New River near Santa Cruz, St. Elizabeth, to evacuate
the area.
Since the rainy season, several flood-prone areas in St. Elizabeth have been under serious threat of flooding.
Parish disaster co-ordinator, Yvonne Morrison, told The Gleaner on Wednesday, a day after the order was issued, that the roads and yards in the community are flooded and so far only one family has left.
Kinsley Clarke, a representative from the community, said seven to eight more families are now making preparations to leave.
HIGHER GROUND
He said the farmers in the area are also being affected. One pig farmer has already removed his animals from the farm to higher ground, and an egg farmer, who suffered great loss from the floods last year, is monitoring his holdings.
In the meantime, Felton Brown, of the National Irrigation Commission, told The Gleaner that his organisation have opened a section of the river dyke and the water is receding steadily.
"If we don't get any more rain over the next week or so things should be back to normal at New River," he said.
He said the area is under water because the capacity of the drains to carry the flows is exceeded by the amount of rainfall. He added that since Tuesday his agency has been
monitoring the area and they have found where the level of the Black River itself has now fallen lower than the drain level.
In October last year, over 20 families were flooded out and had to be evacuated from the area. They were housed at shelters in Santa Cruz until the water receded.
