The National Works Agency (NWA) will begin an additional $100 million phase of its island wide Flood Mitigation and drain cleaning programme. This augments an earlier $50 million programme of bushing and drain cleaning activities which began in May this year and is nearing completion.
Under the $50 million programme several critical drains and gullies have been addressed which are located in flood prone areas across the island.
In the South East Region, they include the Nanse Pen, Graham Heights, Boucher Gully, Whitfield and Elliot drains in St. Andrew, Boat Tie Island Gully and the Tinson Pen Drains along Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston. Overall the programme is 80% complete in St. Catherine, 55% in Kingston and 95% in St. Thomas.
Mitigation works in the Southern Region have focused on critical drains and gullies in traditionally flood prone areas of Clarendon, such as, Four Paths, Free Town, Guinep Tree, Water Lane, Trout Hall, Lionel Town, Rocky Point and Grantham.
Critical drain cleaning efforts in the Western Region has been completed in the parish of St. James and additional funds from the $100 million programme will be used to clean other drains in this region.
Drain cleaning activities in St. Elizabeth and Manchester are approximately 50% complete. Sections of St. Elizabeth have been affected by flooding during prolonged rainfall. The drain cleaning programme addressed drains in Goshen, Pepper, Emmaus to Nain, Southfield, Holland Bamboo, Luana, Washfoot Gully and Pedro Cross to Lititz.
Cleaning of critical drains and gullies in the North Eastern parishes of Portland, St. Ann and St. Mary are over 90% complete. These include St. Ann’s Bay and Ocho Rios drains in St. Ann, Port Maria and Annotto Bay drains in St. Mary and drains located in Port Antonio, Portland.
The additional $100 million will be used to target other areas that have been deemed critical for mitigation works.
