Elderly woman on edge
...appeals for help as floodwater, erosion threaten house
MONICA Brown is on edge as heavy rains associated with the hurricane season threaten to erode the foundation of her house in Rose Town, St Andrew, where residents complain of frequent flooding from a nearby gully.
Brown’s house sits on the border of the Mother White Gully, which runs through the St Andrew Southern community and empties into the Kingston Harbour. And, for the 20 years she has lived in the community, Brown says once there is torrential showers the gully is prone to overflowing its banks.
On a visit to the area last Friday, significant erosion was seen mere metres away from the fencing to Brown’s house.
“I need some help because I don’t want to wake up in the night after rain fall and mi house wash weh. If the [National] Works Agency could just put some stone basket there so that it don’t erode no further because this is dangerous,” Brown pleaded.
The woman, now in her 70s, explained that when she first acquired the plot of land after the previous owners died, the erosion was not as bad as it is now. She explained that she never meant to live on the gully side, but had no other option.
“I’m not living on the gully bank because it was not like this before when the land authority gave it to me, and I started paying taxes for it.
“It’s because I was so desperate why I took this piece of land here and started taxes to the land agency. But things and times change now,” Brown said.
She explained that over the years, the area of land buffering her house from the edge of the gully has gradually deteriorated, leaving only a narrow strip that’s keeping her house above ground.
In addition to the imminent danger, Brown is concerned about floodwaters breaching her home, as was the case for several households in the community during the recent passage for Tropical Storm Delta.
Vilma Dunn, a resident of Tobias Street in Rose Town, told the Jamaica Observer that while her house was spared in the deluge, she has lived in the community long enough to know what happens whenever the gully overflows.
“Is from my children dem a school and mi affi lift dem out the house because the place used to flood, because when rain fall the water come over inna di yard, and is 42 years mi live here so,” said Dunn.
Brown added that in the recent heavy rains, floodwaters were so high it almost covered Beecher Bridge in the community.
“If you ever see this water when the rain fall, you fraid to stand on the bridge.
“The gully can’t contain the water because you have other gullies feeding into this one, and when the rain fall the water rise and come up on the road, and come up under the bridge. It flood the street and take away even the cars on the road.
“Many people house get wash out. I live here from 1980s and all of those people that live on the gully get flood every time the rain fall, and I am concerned because if the rain continue like this, we are in danger,” Brown said.