Mallali experiencing worst flooding in 25 years

THIS YEAR’S FLOODS IN MALLALI IS THE WORST IN 25 YEARS Toshao of Mallali,
Orlayne Robert Williams, said Wednesday.
Williams told www.aroundtheregions.com that Mallali, an Upper Demerara/Berbice (Region
Ten) Amerindian community, 45 miles from the bauxite mining town in Linden, that flood
waters are rising continuously, endangering the entire 200-member, 67-household community.
“Right now, the water is really very high as it has covered the entire Mission and numerous
families are affected. Actually, everybody is affected at this time because it’s not something that
we experience every year,” Toshao Williams said.
He said this year’s flood is the worst experienced by his community since 1996, when waters
were about almost six feet high.

“We are not very far away from that. We have already passed five feet high and the water
continues to rise. We are forced to see how we can cope with this situation as we do not know
what next to do,” the Toshao lamented.
He said that their livelihood which comes from fishing and hunting has been decimated by the
floods.
“The rain is still falling and this is hard on us. We depend upon the fish and hunting for our daily
survival, but unfortunately, we cannot do either of the two as the flood is very bad. Most people
depend upon that for a living and we don’t know when last we got a fish as this flood has taken
away everything and it is really affecting us,” the Toshao revealed.
So far, the affected community has received 50 hampers for the 67 households last Sunday when
a Ministerial Team, including Prime Minister, Mark Phillips, Amerindian Affairs Minister,
Pauline Sukhai and Public Works Minister, Bishop Juan Anthony Edghill visited the flood-
battered community.

Some families could not benefit from the food hamper distribution, according to the disappointed
Toshao.
“I received 50 hampers from the Ministers there who were distributing on Sunday. There are
some families who didn’t get it because they were not considered as a household. Some houses
have two to three families living there,” Toshao Williams said.
He made a passionate public appeal for food and water to embattled Mallali residents
“I am desperately appealing to the Government and the relevant ministries to help us. As the
Toshao, I have seen and heard on the news about the Ministers, Prime Minister and President
going to several communities, we are in a very bad shape as not a single official from the
Government or the Region has sought to visit us,” he complained.
“We have not seen the Regional Chairman for Region Ten in some years so I want to know if
Mallali is no longer part of Region Ten or apart of the country. Every day, you hear about a lot of
Ministers going to the affected areas, but not a single one of them has sought to visit us while we
are desperately battling this flood within the community,” observed a displeased Williams.
“This is very unacceptable,” the two-term Mallali Toshao stressed.