Heavy rain, high winds cause havoc in Marabella, ‘Creek’

Heavy rain wreaked havoc in San Fernando yesterday afternoon ripping off the roofs of 15 Marabella homes and felling trees. While the residents of Marabella were picking up the pieces following the torrential downpour, motorists were battling floodwaters along the Shore of Peace, Mosquito Creek. Large tree branches  littered the Lady Hailes Avenue entrance of the San Fernando General Hospital. Reports also indicated that a tree fell in Mon Repos during the heavy downpour. However, no injuries were reported.

Last evening Marabella West councillor, Gloria Calliste, in describing the incident, said it was the worse she has seen. “It was terrible. It was like a tornado passing through the Train line. People leave their homes and start to run. It is really critical here. The rain came down really hard,” she lamented. Up to late last afternoon residents along the Marabella Train line, were picking up the pieces following the heavy downpour that was accompanied by high winds. She said residents were assisting each other in putting old sheets of galvanize over the gaping holes in the their roofs.

Members of the Trinidad and Tobago Red Cross were in the Marabella community up to late last night assisting the affected residents. Calliste said it was disheartening to see the residents in dire need and has opened her office to residents who have no place to go. Officers of the Self Help Commission are expected to visit the area tomorrow to assist in relief efforts. Reports also indicated that three homes in Claxton Bay and two in Basta Hall, Couva, also suffered damage.

The Trinidad and Tobago Met Office, in an information bulletin issued yesterday, indicated, “Light low level winds, an increase in our atmospheric moisture and intense daytime heating have combined to produce the strong convection that has lead to the development of these showers and thundershowers. Western and southern areas of Trinidad are expected to be most affected by this showery activity.”

Miles of traffic were seen on both the north and southbound lanes of the South Trunk Road as motorists anxiously tried to traverse the high waters which were also caused in part by the inclement conditions and rising tides of the adjacent Gulf of Paria. Motorists, who use the route often, complained that flooding was a norm when the tide rose in combination with heavy rainfall. (RR)