Port-of-Spain mayor Louis Lee Sing says the city and the country are ill-equipped to handle any major natural disaster, including flooding. "Port-of-Spain is nowhere (near) ready for any major natural disaster, including a major flood," he said yesterday. His comment comes in the wake of the Meteorological Office's announcement on Sunday of the possibility of heavy rainfall and subsequent flooding, which yesterday raised questions about the country's ability to mitigate natural disasters.
Speaking with the T&T Guardian by phone, Lee Sing said: "I think the country does not take natural disasters seriously."He added that the State had not made available adequate resources to "keep drains clean and properly maintained."Within the city, corporation staff "do their best to keep it clean but we lack the human and financial resources to adequately keep it clean."
The city's $198 million recurrent expenditure, he said, was also not enough to address issues, such as those, since salaries, rent and other bills were paid from it. Although he had a $20 million developmental budget, it too was not enough, he said. Lee Sing identified as a major problem the East Dry River, which, he said, "is in a state of disrepair." He hoped newly-appointed Works Minister Suruj Rambachan would make it a priority.
