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Infrastructural Monitoring Team
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Sea and river defences, man-made and natural, serve to protect the way of life
of Guyana’s mostly coastal based population from the Atlantic Ocean and our many
rivers. Sluices are woven into these defences for drainage of the Coast, and as
an obligatory barrier against these waters. Amidst the recent flooding of large
sections of the East and West Coasts of Demerara, it was obvious that the
functional capacity, condition and operation of sluices dictated the extent of
flooding and subsequent drainage. An important aspect of the present Institutional Capacity Building (ICB) Project is the installation of a database that will allow for instantaneous and up to date information on the condition of the sea and river defences, including sluices and dams. Engineers of the Sea and River Defence Division (SRDD) have been carrying out a Condition Survey to take an inventory of the sea and river defences, the backbone of the 4SHORE database. Through the Condition Survey, several SRDD engineers have gained first hand knowledge of sluices in the flood hit areas.It was therefore logical that the SRDD was invited by the Honourable Anthony Xavier, Minister of Public Works and Communication to form part of the Infrastructural Monitoring Team during the flooding. The team; comprising Mr. Omadat Persaud (Work Services Group, Minister of Public Works and Communication), Major Gary Beaton (Guyana Defence Force), Mr. Adrian Ramnarine (Drainage and Irrigation Board, Ministry of Agriculture) and Mr. Rabindranauth Chandarpal (Sea and River Defence Division, Ministry of Public Works and Communication) was tasked with monitoring the drainage infrastructure of sluices, pumps, drainage canals and road culverts with a specific objective of suggesting improvements. We traversed the flood hit areas daily; monitoring the flood levels, checking that sluices were functional, ensuring that pumps were operating at maximum capacity in the most critical areas and checking for obstructions to drainage in canals and through road culverts. Additionally, the team was involved in two reconnaissance flights over the East and West Demerara Water Conservancies and sea and river defences on the East and West Coasts of Demerara and the East Bank Demerara to check for signs of breaches. The work of the Infrastructural Monitoring Team was important in providing first hand technical data on the extent of flooding and the functioning of the drainage infrastructure. We were pleased that our efforts had a positive impact on the removal of flood waters. On a more grandiose scale, the work of the Infrastructural Monitoring Team reflects what is possible through the results of the present ICB Project. All members were able to make significant contributions in their area of expertise. As an active member of the ICB project I have been disheartened by the dwindling contributions outside of the Sea and River Defence Division. The upcoming ICB Bridging Programme must seek to reintroduce to the ICB project, the broad spectrum of agencies essential for its success. Impression of the flooding in January 2005 | |||||||
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