High tides swamp coastal communities

Apr 29, 2013 News

Coastal Guyana yesterday was drenched with flood waters due to extremely high tides combined with severe winds.
Affected areas included the East Coast Demerara highway, communities on Essequibo Coast and communities in Berbice.
Inundation caused several inches of flood water to wreak havoc on the residents of the various communities.
High tides caused over topping of the sea walls between Lilliendaal and Vlissengen Road, Georgetown, Rupert Craig Highway and parts of Bel Air, Subryanville, Skeldon, Den Amstel, Leonora and Uitvlugt.
Police cornered off sections of the East Coast as authorities cleared silted sections of the drainage system on the highway.
An advisory was issued by the Ministry of Public Works for persons not to converge at the Georgetown seawalls yesterday.
At Hampton Court, Essequibo a Koker door collapsed and authorities have since been mobilized to the area to repair the structure.
Public Works Minister, Robeson Benn confirmed that although the Lilliendaal pump was working, several drains and trenches in the area were blocked, preventing the water from running off the land.

Sandbags were aligned along the northern lane of the East Coast carriageway last night to prevent further overtopping

Benn explained that the tide was 3.11 meters high plus another 1.5 meters of waves were riding on top. Adding that gusty winds contributed to the tidal flooding, it was noted that the tide was abrupt and did not show up on the meteorological guidelines.