- After koker door fails to shut
Residents of Albouystown were yesterday afternoon again in flooded conditions after water from the Demerara River gushed through the Sussex Street koker, which reportedly suffered a breach. Many residents were incensed as they cited possible sabotage to the koker. However, reports indicate that the koker was allegedly left open by a worker attached to the Mayor and City Council.
Dexter Hatton, who is the pump’s attendant, noted that the pulley used to raise and lower the sluice door was not functioning properly since earlier in the day when he initially attempted to shut the sluice. He further stated that an excavator was used to shut the door to ensure that flooding in larger sections of South Georgetown is averted.
Apart from the issues arising from the sluice door, Hatton also mentioned that the koker’s pump was also dysfunctional. Hatton said that the pump is currently in a poor state and such efforts to quickly pump water out of the inundated parts were tedious and often times proved futile. City Engineer, Colvern Venture, is however alleging that residents of the community usually tamper with the koker whenever they see it as necessary.
Residents of the community are offering a different story however, since their claim is that the koker was sabotaged by workers attached to the M&CC. They are adamant that a hymac was responsible for the damage caused to the sluice. Residents are citing negligence on the part of the Government, who according to them, have “forgotten” the community of Albouystown. The community was under water after heavy rains during last week, and now they are facing another flood, this one tainted with the inflow of salt water.
