Residents in east and central Trinidad were preparing for the worst overnight, after the Caroni River burst its banks in some areas around 6 pm yesterday and overflowed in the communities of Caroni Village, La Paille Village and Ibis Gardens.
Kelly Village/Warrenville councillor Samuel Sankar said the Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation had mobilised around 6.30 pm to get landfill material on site to reinforce the banks before it eroded further and becomes irreparable with the continuing rainy weather.
“If the banks burst more, that’s it, there will be massive flooding up to about 3 to 4 inches high in some areas and a disaster will occur. The holes in the banks need to be plugged and we will be working throughout the night to ensure some relief happens,” Sankar said.
“There is a floodgate installed in 2019 that has become defective and cannot close and the water is coming through and eroding the bank, causing stress to the riverbank and residents. We want the Ministry of Works to ensure any repairs to this gate would make it functional. There’s been faulty repairs and shoddy work in the past to this gate.”
Sankar said should the banks break further, around 3,000 people may be affected in the three communities.
Guardian Media understands that in one case, flooding in one of the areas was caused because a farmer had cut into the riverbank to allow water to flow into his garden during the dry season.