More misery for Nightingale Grove residents

Frantically, Sandra* and her family moved furniture and other valuable items from the lower level of their home in Nightingale Grove scheme in Gutters, St Catherine, to a higher floor.

With each trip, their eyes were fixated on the rising water - brought on by heavy rain associated with Tropical Storm Rafael - that slowly breached the perimeters of their home.

"Right now, me a fret bout the fridge weh me buy wah day. The fridge weh me buy fi over $100,000 wah day, me affi really wonder if me need fi kotch it up pon two more block because the water a take time come in. But it ago wicked later inna the night," the woman related.

Flooding has been a nauseating issue for Sandra's family and other citizens of Cedar Avenue for more than 50 years.

"Every time rain fall we affi worry and rain nuh affi fall fi we get flood out. This a something weh a bother fi we fi years and nobody nah look round here pon we. My washing machine mash up inna the rain weh fall wah day [Hurricane Beryl] and a up to the wall a the gate the water reach we. A wicked ting pon we round here," a resident who gave his name as Sam shared.

Brown, murky, knee-high water moved steadily through Nightingale Grove - which is known for flooding - carrying plastic bottles and knocking down empty garbage bins in its path. A farmer was seen moving his ram goat from his backyard into his pickup van, in preparation to relocate the animal to higher ground. One resident explained that the water coming from the Coburn Gully started overflowing from about 2 p.m. Tuesday.

"All of my furniture dem pack up high inna my ceiling already. Me can't sleep inna my house fi now because me affi wait pon the water fi draw down den me affi wash out my house before me go back in deh," he told THE STAR. Residents of adjoining Cedar Drive state that the rising water poses a threat to their property.

"This anuh nothing yet, enuh. Weh we normally see, the water reach up to the window, all up to the door post, as high as yuh see it. We can't do nothing more than watch and wait pon the water fi go down and a just the reality that," an elderly men shared. Randy, who lives with his father, said elders told them that the entire area was part of the river.

"So, fi build up the house dem, dem di affi dump up the place. But every time it rain, we flood out because the river a tek time come back to its place," he said, staring penitently on the rising waters.

*Name changed to protect identity