Flooded family remains in shelter...for now

However, the family will have to return to their home once they get help to clean and sanitise the area, chairman of the Penal/Debe Regional Corporation Dr Allan Sammy said yesterday.

He said contrary to a newspaper report, the family was not ordered to leave the shelter, and was neither evicted by the corporation.

“It is not true,” Sammy said of the report.

“She is still there and likely to be there for a few days still.” Sammy spoke with Sunday Newsday after a UNC press conference at Fun Splash in Debe.

Chance, who is pregnant, and her five children were stranded in their one-room, galvanise- home for 14 hours last Tuesday as their home was surrounded by floodwaters in the aftermath of the storm.

The family was rescued from being marooned by two villagers and were later given shelter at the activity centre.

But on Friday Chance, as reported in another newspaper yesterday, said her family was ordered to leave corporation representatives so the centre could resume its community activities.

Sunday Newsday spoke briefly on the phone to Ali yesterday who said he, his wife and their children were still at the centre. Asked how the family was doing, Ali said, “things just cool, man.” Sammy said Chance and others were told they would have to return to their homes eventually, but said the corporation would help them clean up their surroundings.

“We had told her, as we have told all others that we are moving out - we are moving you out because your house didn’t break down. We will clean your house for you, which we did yesterday. We will clean your pit latrine for you, we went to clean it but it can’t be cleaned yet so they will go back when the water goes down.” Sammy said the family will be returned to their home only after the pit latrine was cleaned which he anticipates will take a few days as the floodwaters have yet to subside.

Asked whether proper housing could be provided for the family, Sammy said the regional corporation was not able to provide homes to anyone as that fell under the purview of central government.