Salt water floods Cedros streets

Cedros councillor Shankar Teelucksingh, in a telephone interview yesterday, said the situation could have been avoided had repairs to a bridge and flood-gate in the Bonasse/Cedros area been completed.

“Due to spring tides we are having, salt water or sea water is coming up that main drain and running straight to all the other linked drains in the Bonasse district causing flooding in almost six streets with almost 50 residents being affected by that salt water,” Teelucksingh said.

“Floods used to happen before but not as bad because it was controlled by the flood gate and the contractor came down and they removed one part of the flood gate and if that project had finished, it would have prevented this salt water from coming up the main drain in Cedros,’ He said residents, as well as a team from the Siparia Regional Corporation spent the past few nights attempting to reopen the flood-gate to release the salt water that had become trapped after the tides had receded.

“People yards are in a terrible condition,” he said, adding, “salt water is not like rain water so when it dry, a stench is emanating from that salt water, it’s giving off a mangrove smell, and businesses are being affected by it,’ he said.

He said the salt water can also cause significant damage to vehicles and residents were either forced top leave their vehicles at home and not drive along the flooded streets or take them to higher ground when the tides began to rise.

Meanwhile, a rough seas bulletin was issued by the Met Service yesterday stated that sea conditions were expected to intensify over the next 24 hours due to northerly swells which is attributed to a disturbance in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Last evening, sea water also affected motorists using the South Trunk Road as high tides led to flooding from the Mosquito Creek.