Hundreds of animals, crops dying as flood worsens in EBB

By Andrew Carmichael

Hundreds of animals as well as thousands of acres of rice and other crops are dying as flooding worsens in the East Bank of Berbice, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), as residents and farmers call for intervention of authorities to save their livelihood.

Farmers situated on the Lower East Bank Berbice said that they were successful in getting an excavator to go to the area when the floods had just hit and after four days of working, they were told that the machine had to be removed and taken to the Black Bush Polder.
The machine had been clearing one canal and had not reached halfway when it was relocated.
Over 5000 acres of rice land is currently underwater. This is in addition to several acres of fruit trees and cash crops which are inundated.
Moreover, hundreds of heads of cattle have died and others continue to fall under the harsh conditions of living in two feet of water without grass to eat.
Radish Ramkarran has over 1000 acres of rice land – all underwater. He said that 270 acres have already been cultivated.

“And we might lose all. Is between 21 to 30 days since we shy paddy and we aren’t seeing anything (new plants growing), all the rice underwater. It is not only me; they have other farmers here on the East Bank and we have thousands of acres of rice and nobody doing anything,” the farmer said, pointing out that they have approached several regional officials to no avail.
According to Ramkarran, the single active drainage canal cannot adequately drain the seven villages stretching from Lansdale to Khotbradt.
Deolall Sahadeo is both a cash crop and fruit farmer cultivating land at Brother Village. He farms with his brother-in-law and cultivates 30 acres with fruits including soursop, bananas and plantains.
He has lost all.
“Over 200 soursop trees and orange all underwater,” he added.
Sahadeo said even if he would have been able to afford it to get new planting material for the bananas and plantain it would be difficult because of the scarcity. However, he explained that the current price is too high for him.”
The cash crop and fruit farmer said 100 shoots will cost $30,000.
Meanwhile, livestock farmers said that their losses are significant. Culvis Sam is a small sheep farmer and many of his animals have died.

Sam explained that his animals would go and graze and return home in the evening but he is now missing 30 of them.
Asked how he knows that the animals died and were not stolen, Sam said he has gone searching for the missing ones and found their bodies.
Additionally, some farmers like Asgar Insaff Ali have been trying to get some of the young animals out of the water. His success is very limited.
He told this publication that those he was able to locate in the savannah and take home have all died.

“I try bringing then on the dry land and they still ain’t make it.”
In addition, he said that about 40 heads of cattle also cannot be accounted for.
Shahabadeen Ali, who is himself a cattle farmer, told Guyana Times that he has been on a search for his animals for days and has been able to identify some of the carcasses as being his animals.
“When I walk when this dam is [covered by water] I see about three of four cow lie down dead one place,” the farmer said, adding that he owned between 30 to 40 heads of cattle.

According to him, of the scores of dead animals he has seen, four belongs to him.
“I don’t know where the rest are because I am not seeing them. Is all over flood and the cows have no grass to eat.”
He said he personally went along with other farmers seeking assistance from regional authorities.
The Agriculture Ministry has been providing and transporting free feed to affected farmers at Cookrite Savannah, which is the hardest hit section of the Black Bush Polder.