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West Ruimveldt fears disease outbreak from poor drainage systems
Try to imagine walking daily in and out of a house that is surrounded by water polluted by the bacteria of the neighbouring trenches and the solids of a septic tank.
Such is the situation of approximately 800 residents of the West Ruimveldt Community. A section of the community is surrounded by drains filled with stagnant water that overflows into the front and back yards of many houses.
A resident removing water from the clogged drain
Yesterday, inhabitants of the Hibiscus and Cactus Street West Ruimveldt area told this newspaper about the unhealthy surroundings which are products of the poor drainage systems.
They claimed that for the past 14 years, this issue has been brought to the attention of the Mayor and City Council, but there has been nothing but “unfulfilled promises”, which they are utterly disgusted with.
Charles DeJonge, a resident of the area for over 20 years, told Kaieteur News, “For about 14 years now, the area is always flooding. The water in the trench remains stagnant and in order to remove it, we have to take buckets and dip the nasty water out of the trench so that the water does not end up in our house and covering the bridges completely. But even that doesn’t work. Whether rain fall or not, we got to deal with the flooding and the swampy areas around our homes that is a mixture of septic tank water and gutter water.”
DeJonge’s neighbours also related that “the nasty water is very unhealthy for us. We are getting sick every other day. There is a young baby who is also being seriously affected by the contaminated water.” Residents are pleading with the relevant authorities to make the necessary arrangements to remedy the issue that has plagued the community for close to 14 years.
They recommend that four culverts be built within the area and that the trench located directly opposite the Demerara Ice Factory be cleaned immediately. It is their strong belief that the clogged trench is one of the primary causes of their present health issues as well as the major contributing factor to the polluted water that pervades their space.
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