-As flood victims’ woes seem endless
Another serious flood waters have again engulfed several Montserrado communities and the nightmare and menace of victims continues with endless illusions, as there are no durable solutions in sight.
Principally, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday of this week, several communities situated in flood plain and prone areas have again been swallowed in heavy flood waters at the detriments of the affected residential areas in many parts of Montserrado County.
Urban planners told this Reporter at the weekend that the woes of the flood waters victims are becoming perpetually endless and their suffering and struggle during the course of each rainy season every year are homelessness and strangulation.
However, the urban planners have on many occasions blamed the root causes of Montserrado communities flooding to poor housing construction and environmental violations on part of many urban residents and business entities.
The urban planners pointed out that Monrovia, Paynesville, Bushrod Island, Duala and Red-Light Markets will continue to encounter the flood water challenges owing to illegal and unauthorized construction works.
According to reports gathered at the weekend and early Tuesday heavy rains seriously affected the communities of Bernard Farm, Kpelleh Town, Omega and Zayzay and Zubah communities in Paynesville City, outside Monrovia.
Sadly, in the heart of the Red-Light Market early Tuesday morning, hundreds of traders were seen commuting through the dirty flood waters as century old drainages were indeed overwhelmed by invading flood waters from several entry points of the commercial hub in Paynesville.
As a result of the early Tuesday heavy rains, the usual presence of the thousands of petty traders at the bustling Red-Light Market were visibly absent and the chain of stores that sometimes open early for business were also closed.
Early morning buyers
At the same time, early morning buyers from Central Monrovia and other parts of Montserrado Communities were constrained to stand at the front of shops and stores where as the front of the stores were overwhelmed by commuters and would be buyers due to the heavy rains.
In Monrovia, communities of West Point, Waterside, Clara, Vai Towns, Soniewein and Buzzy Quarters were again submerged into dirty flood waters carrying human and animal faeces in the clustered residential areas.
At Zayzay Community in Paynesville, houses submerged in the dirty flood waters were seen at waist levels and occupants in some of the houses were stranded for several hours thus gravely affecting daily movements to do business or buy their regular food items.
At the Duport Road Junction, flood waters was seen covering the entire paved stretch road that leads to the commercial hub at the ELWA Junction and few yards away, the Aminata Gas station, the front of the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) substation was swallowed by the flood waters.
Despite repeated public outcries and residents sounding many clarion calls on the managements of the LEC, Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation (LWSC) and the overall custodian Ministry of Public Works to reconstruct the nearly forty year old clogged drainage, such sentiments had fallen on deaf ears of authorities.
In separate interviews with some of the affected flood waters residents and early Tuesday morning buyers that thronged the Red-Light Market, they expressed the hope and prayed that the rainy season ends so that their suffering comes to an end live sanity and dignity.
A 55-year-old Monrovia vegetable retailer Victoria B. Thomas described the flood waters as a complete menace and called on Public Works and LWSC to fix all the clogged drainages in Monrovia, Paynesville and other parts of Montserrado County.
“I will really be happy if LWSC and MPW could undertake the complete rehabilitation of our old drainages and allow the dirty water to move freely in the ocean,” Madam Thomas stressed.
Red-Light Market Wholesale corn and peanut dealer Patricia M. Nimely pointed out that the drainage challenges at the nation largest food market has become insurmountable and need urgent attention by the Municipal Government of Paynesville. Report by Edwin M. Fayia, III