RESIDENTS of Little Bay Castara have expressed relief with recent drainage work done by the Tobago House of Assembly in their area. In a video released by the Division of Infrastructure, Quarries and Urban Development (DIQUD) on Monday, resident Louis Jack said, "For the past years we have been experiencing flooding in the area. Every time rain falls, it floods. They came and build a drain; it alleviate some of the flooding but then they cover the drain, the drain clog and it flood again."
Innis Edwards, Bishop, Old School of the Nazarene Spiritual Baptist Church, said he had complained to the THA about the clogged canal which had affected his church proceedings.
"The canal block up, water flowing the in the road and we have nowhere to pass. When rain fall yuh have to over church early. Yuh hadda know what time to hold meeting here because the whole road is in water."
In a 2021 Newsday interview, Innis said, “It is about 14 years now I have been trying in vain to get the drain fixed."
He said he was forced to officiate a funeral service at the Castara public cemetery as he was worried the bad weather would have affected the service if it was held in the church.
A DIQUD official told Newsday that the drain was widened to approximately nine feet to allow for freer pedestrian movement.
"Previously it was a narrow walkway. The drain was also raised and removable concrete installed to make it accessible for cleaning," the official said.
Jack said he was pleased with the work but through the drain "would be little higher. For the time being, the flooding has diminished a lot."
Inniss said he had appealed to Augustine to address the situation during campaigning for the last THA election and was glad his prayers have been answered.
"I'm saying thanks be to God for this entrance that we have here, because they have done something good. We have got great relief, we can walk in with ease. There is further development."
