Widespread flooding in Spanish Town and environs – mayor Loop Jamaica

Black Immigrant Daily News

Mayor of Spanish Town Norman Scott has reported widespread flooding in Spanish Town and its environs, as the island experienced adverse weather conditions associated with Hurricane Ian on Monday.

“We have been having problems, and we will have further problems if the rains continue into Tuesday,” Mayor Scott told Loop News on Monday.

Mayor Scott said that there have been reports of flooding in St John’s Road, Old Harbour Road, Job Lane, Brunswick Avenue (in the vicinity of the stoplight), Buck Town, Ensom Avenue, sections of Sligoville, Waterloo, Keystone, Highfield Avenue (off Brunswick Avenue), and Kent Village.

He disclosed that there had been no major drain cleaning exercises before the start of the hurricane season, except for one initiated to clean parish council drains in June.

“I have an arrangement with the owners of equipment that we use to clean the parochial drains, the parish council drains that can facilitate human access, such as those on Burke Road, Oxford Road and Brunswick Avenue, but other than that, there has been no activity. Most of the flooding is now taking place in areas that fall under the authority of the NWA (National Works Agency),” Mayor Scott said.

The NWA advised the public Monday that the Bog Walk Gorge in St Catherine was closed because of rising water levels.

“The river has now covered the road,” Mayor Scott said on Monday.

The rising water levels are due to the effects of Hurricane Ian.

The Met Service said on Tuesday that an induced trough across the western Caribbean and Jamaica, by Hurricane Ian, will linger through to Friday.

“Unstable weather lingers across the island, influenced by Hurricane Ian, to produce moderate showers and thunderstorms mainly across southern and northwestern parishes today. Expect a temporary break in showers and thunderstorms tonight into Wednesday,” the Met Service said Tuesday.

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