Sandy Bay residents still trying to cope one year after disaster

One year on, some residents of Sandy Bay are still trying to put their lives together, after the passage of a trough system that caused widespread damage in their village.

On November 29, 2016, heavy rains and the flooding that resulted forced as many as 197 villagers into emergency shelters.

Last Wednesday, a thanksgiving service was held at the Sandy Bay Primary School, which served as an emergency shelter for three months.

Eight homes were totally destroyed, five partially damaged and several sustained minor damage from the flood waters.

SEARCHLIGHT spoke with two survivors about how they have coped since last year’s event.

Karen Nickie Yorke of Pepper Village, Sandy Bay, said she was at home when the flooding began.

“My children were soaking from head to toe, even the bed they were sleeping on was soaked,” she said.

“We managed to come out of the house and get help. It was dark and there were a lot of debris on the road, but we managed to get to the shelter,” Yorke recalled.

One year later, Yorke, who has three children, said her house is still standing, but it is uninhabitable.

“I am coping, but still hope that they would provide somewhere for me to live, as I am still in rent house,” she disclosed.

Monette, also from Pepper Village, said on the fateful night, she was looking at the water flowing in the gutter next to her house.

After 11 p.m., she and her sister and their seven children went to her grandmother’s house and it was there she saw the water overflow in her yard and begin to rise. 

“While at my grandmother, I heard rumblings and tumblings and just saw water keep coming down. I screamed and I cried. I told my children I don’t believe we have a house anymore, because it seems as if the front of the house had already washed away; so, I just want to give God thanks and praise, for carrying us through and bringing us thus far.”

She said they initially camped at the Sandy Bay Primary School, but have since reluctantly moved back into their house.

“I don’t feel safe at home anymore, to tell you the truth, especially in the night when rain is falling. I feel real scared because is like nothing hasn’t done as yet (work) and the gutter is just there open. It’s not safe anymore.”

In addition to private homes, the trough system caused the disruption of school for an entire term and bridges were blocked, damaged or destroyed and a number of businesses and other buildings were damaged. 

Graves at the cemetery at London were exposed by waters which gushed through the area.

Government has since identified an area adjacent to the current cemetery to be used as a short-term burial site.(GHJ)