No permission given by NDC for excavation – Chairman

Excavation of Boerasirie dam

…Police asked to act

Amid tensions over the excavation of the Boerasirie dam by unknown persons, which can result in severe flooding in nearby communities, the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) on Wednesday said no permission was given to conduct such activities.

Chairman of the Council, Vishal Ambedkar noted that efforts were made to stop the persons who are excavating the area, but the machinery would be turned off when officials arrive at the location and works continue once they are gone. Additionally, the works are being carried out primarily on the weekend since the Council functions only on weekdays. This is seen as a method to evade the Council from addressing the situation, the Chairman said.
“The scenario at the Boerasirie Creek was brought to our attention at the NDC level. We tried to meet with the persons who tried to remove dirt from the dam area… this comes under the NDC and we haven’t given any permission to do so. Every time we went there to stop them, the machine would be shut off. They’re removing it during the weekend and our workers only work on weekdays,” said the NDC Chairman.
The Police were also alerted of the matter and efforts were made to contact the Regional Executive Officer of Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara). Both proved futile since the Police is yet to respond and the REO was always unavailable when contact is made with his office.
“We would have written the Commander of C Division at the Leonora Police Station for them to take action against the matter. The Police are yet to act. He’s claiming that he received permission from a regional official to remove it. That dam serves as a safeguard between the two creeks,” the BDC Chairman said.
Persons from the area recently contacted Guyana Times, voicing their concerns over the excavating operation, which they fear will impact them gravely if it continues.
This publication understands that men started excavating the dirt from the dam and have been retailing it to interested persons, while some was dumped at a nearby open space. The situation is even worse, given the fact that there is no structure to stop water from entering communities during high tides. The dam has been lowered significantly and any high tide in the future will result in mass flooding along Tuschen and Zeelugt.
“There is a dam before the trench, and someone is excavating the dirt from it and they’re excavating so low. This trench goes straight out into the river and there is nothing to stop the water so when the high tide comes, it will flood the entire De Kindren and Zeelugt,” said one of the Councillors.
She added, “The residents and fishermen are calling for something to be done before they’re affected. Some of the dirt is sold to people and they’re using some to build other areas. Some persons went out and stop them from digging the dam further and explained what will happen if they excavate the dam so low and they still continued. The Tuschen-Uitvlugt NDC is also aware of this,” she explained.
Meanwhile, a resident from the area, Mugdridge (only name provided) explained, “If the dam get a breach, it will flood everywhere. If I get flood, who will be responsible? We have the Phagwah and Easter spring tide. If the dam get a breach, it will cause a big problem.”
When the tide rises, some fishermen will also suffer since it will not be possible for their boats to be docked along the waterway. The resident noted that this is an extremely dangerous situation being created that will affect thousands of residents living in the area.
Residents are hoping that the Police intervene to ensure the dam is not dug further.