Fifty three years of accumulation of mud in the city’s canals

Jul 25, 2017 Letters

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Dear Editor,
In a previous letter, we attempted to describe the nature of the blockage of all the main canals existing in the City. We said that these main drainage arteries are blocked solid with mud and other matter, a few hundred feet from the kokers, precisely east of the kokers. We can say with justification that all the mentioned canals suffer from the same fate of what will be described herein; and one wonders with all the eight hundred million dollars expended on the desilting of the drainage system in the City, are we safe from flooding when slight rainfall occurs. The eight hundred million dollar question is who is/are responsible for this con job.
Due to the regularity of heavy rainfall in that period, the work was abandoned. One would think that no one in their sane mind would commence drainage work in the May – June rainy season, but are there such persons within the compound of City Hall? Just within the past two weeks, work recommenced on what will be described further.
Two Caterpillar excavators, a lorry, and about a dozen workmen have been excavating the length of canal east of the Bank of Guyana building and beyond the Guyana Museum. On a visit to the location last Friday, here is what was observed. Manhole covers were removed in front of the Bank building. These covers are six foot by six foot, large enough to allow a huge excavator bucket to enter the canal opening, to remove about two cubic yards of mud each time the bucket is lowered into the trench. Yes solid mud, to be loaded onto a lorry to be dumped elsewhere. Looking into the cavity of the trench one sees that mud solidly fills the space. The trench is about eight feet wide and six to seven feet deep. The canal/trench is concreted.
Mud fills the trench five feet to six feet deep. The team of workers have skillfully fashioned a contraption which is placed in the trench a distance away from the man hole by the workers, this contraption is then reeled in by a wire rope attached to the one side track of an excavator. Yes the other track is suspended, whilst the other track operates as a winch. I dare say that only experienced workers could fashion such labour saving device. Perhaps others would wish to express different opinion as to the ability of the professionals to make use of such improvisations.
The workers have to endanger themselves entering the tunnel to place the equipment to haul out the mud, which is then lifted out by the other excavator. Can your readers imagine such inhuman work conditions, in mud laden with germs, stink mud accumulated for years? These men do not get paid subject to the nature of the work. Pictures taken bear testimony. It thus means that the trench/canal that runs under the roadway east of the Bank building right up to the koker in the Munishwar wharf area is full of mud as seen in the canal in front of the Bank. If there had been record kept of the number of truck-loads of mud carted away, we would be astonished.
This solid accumulation of mud has been building up twenty eight years, plus twenty three years, plus two years thus causing the flooding of all areas north of Church Street, and also on the south side. This is a horrible, horrible indictment of criminal negligence of those who administer the affairs of the City, Central Government, and citizens of Georgetown; who are all culpable. From investigations this site has not been visited by any one of significance to witness such degradation of the drainage system of this part of the City.What is true of the above may not be different to all the other main drains, alley-ways, other drains in Georgetown.
Witness the huge trenches in South Georgetown, over-grown with antelope grass. May we submit that the City Council allow citizens to rear cattle in the area to make use of the luxuriant cattle feed, especially when Guyana depends wholly on imported milk.
We hereby ask citizens of Georgetown to visit the situation just described to see for themselves how we have been misled about the drainage situation. But especially to witness how “one, one dutty build dam.” This mud formation caused by 50 years of silt accumulation is a lesson for all of us. The citizens of south G/town are becoming semi-aquatic. Any slight shower of rain causes flooding of yards, and ground floor dwellings. All areas south of Brickdam.
At the snail pace of the work in the “ de-mudding” the word “de-silting” is useless here; of Church Street canal, we can expect that same time next year another canal will be cleared of accumulated mud, and how long would it take to complete the other canals? Editor, here is not the time and place to lay blame; we know whose are at fault. We call those who have responsibility over our lives to action, all we are asking is that greater effort be mandated to speed up the work to remove 50 years of mud from the drainage system of Georgetown, we need several teams like the ones working at Church Street to facilitate the speedy de-silting of the drainage system of the Garden City. By the way, can the team at Church St get another lorry, the team has to wait for the return of the only lorry to load the mud?
Hafiz Rahman

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