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The San Fernando General Hospital.

A video of a “super wardsman” carrying a nurse’s aide on his back, while pushing a patient on a wheelchair through a flooded corridor of the San Fernando General Hospital (SFGH), has prompted a call for emphasis to be placed on the infrastructure of health institutions.

The incident is said to have occurred on Thursday after a heavy downpour, flooding the Accident and Emergency Department.

Former chairman of South West Regional Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) board Dr Lackram Bodoe said the video would be funny, had it not been such a serious issue.

“Government is taking us for a ride in this healthcare sector,” the Opposition MP for Fyzabad said.

“If that video circulating on social media showing hospital staff and a patient being wheeled through a flooded corridor at one of the nation’s hospitals is true, then the healthcare sector is indeed on the verge of collapse.

“A nurse riding on the back of a healthcare worker while he is pushing a patient through a flooded hospital corridor would be funny, were it not a real scenario in one of our hospitals.”

He said this is yet another issue patients face on a daily basis at the nation’s health institutions, in addition to the numerous woes of inadequate drugs and supplies.

“We are now witnessing the fallout from failed/absent preventive maintenance on the aging infrastructure at some of these facilities.

“If the episode depicted on the video is attributable to the heavy rains, then it reflects poor planning on the part of the RHA to mitigate for such eventualities.

“In either case, it reflects the inability of this government and this Minister of Health to maintain a safe physical environment for patient care, and for healthcare workers to do their jobs safely.”

Bodoe said, despite spending billions in the health sector since 2015 the government continues to fall short when it comes to providing satisfactory healthcare.

“Whether it is long waiting times for beds, surgery or clinic appointments, or shortage of drugs and essential supplies, the government continues to fail us. Now we are seeing that they are unable to prevent flooding even in our nation’s hospitals.

“While the MOH (Minister of Health) continues to boast that his government is providing first-class healthcare, the experience of ordinary citizens and patients on the ground tells a different story.

Head of Corporate Communications at the SWRHA, Kevon Gervais, told Newsday, “While there was a situation of minimal overflow of water, due to the inclement weather, it was confined to an isolated area on the ground floor of the SFGH.

“Patient care is not compromised or affected.

“The SWRHA also assures that we are working assiduously with partner agencies to permanently mitigate the reoccurrence of such situation, when it rains heavily.”

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Black Immigrant Daily News

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The petty-cash box which thieves broke into at the Kingdom of God Worship Centre , San Juan, and stole $2,500. –

THE pastor of the Kingdom of God Worship Centre, Bishop David Gilding, is appealing to the thieves who broke into his church to repent, warning that God will not tolerate such disrespect.

Speaking with Newsday on Friday, Gilding said the thieves made off with $2,500 that the church had as petty cash sometime between Wednesday night and Friday morning.

“Telling them bring back the money, I think that will be out of the question because that probably done spend already. I pray that they will come to see the error of their ways and just surrender themselves to the Lord, because that kind of action is going to put them in trouble.”

Gilding said the church, at Upper Bushe Street, San Juan, was locked on Wednesday night after Bible study. When he returned on Friday morning, sometime after 9 am, he found the church’s office broken into and the box with the cash was also broken into and the money missing.

“No man who puts their hands to the things of the Lord is left unscathed. God is a very serious judge as far as this is concerned. As much as a pastor shouldn’t thief money from the church, nobody else is allowed to steal from the church.”

Gilding said this is the second time the church was broken into. The last time was about 15 years ago, and thieves made off with speakers and other electronics. After this latest incident, Gilding said the church will be considering installing security cameras and tightening-up on security.

This is the third church that was robbed this year. In July, thieves made off with the bell from the St John’s Anglican Church, Petit Bourg, San Juan. The 100-pound, 153-year-old bell is believed to have been stolen to be sold as scrap iron. President of the Scrap Iron Dealers Association Allan Ferguson apologised for the theft.

Also in July, the Effectual Doors International Church at Couva Main Road was robbed of an undisclosed sum.

In August, Fr Roger Paponette of the San Rafael RC Church was tied up, the church and the presbytery ransacked, and his Toyota van stolen.

“We live in a different time where people really don’t care if it is religious or secular. If they hungry or thirsty, whatever they want they are looking for it and will take it from anybody,” Gilding said

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File photo – SUREASH CHOLAI

STEADY rains overnight Thursday led to several rivers bursting their banks by Friday morning with some resultant damage especially the Caroni River at El Carmen and the Oropouche River in the area of Sangre Grande, according to reports from several state agencies.

Although Trinidad and Tobago was not hit by any storm (which no-one had forecast) and even as a tropical wave predicted to reach TT had somewhat weakened by Friday, some areas in Trinidad got enough rain to fill and even overspill their rivers. Further, Met Office forecasts at lunchtime were for a damp weekend, even as it downgraded its adverse weather report from orange (“secure yourself/property”) to yellow (“monitor conditions”) but kept its riverine alert at orange. Thursday presented a mixed picture.

Meteorologist Gary Benjamin told Newsday that while many people social media had sharply remarked that the weather they saw on Friday was not as bad as Thursday’s predictions/warnings by state agencies, people in some areas had faced bad weather overnight and on Friday were badly affected by flooding. He said the Met Office had never predicted any storm.

Benjamin justified the Met Office retaining its riverine alert. Talking to Newsday at 3 pm – between the time forecast for low ride at 11.30 am and high tide at 5.42 pm – he said the tide was rising, a fact likely to somewhat impede the outflow of rivers and consequently the run-off of water from flooded lands.

He also warned, “Even if the rain has stopped, water is still percolating into the system, plus there is a high tide pending.”

Benjamin said TT faced a weakened tropical wave, an area of low pressure associated with thunderstorms and cloudiness.

“The tropical wave has slowed in its movement a bit and has lost some of its sharp signature.” .

However he said TT was still experiencing convergence, whereby winds come together in a restricted space, thereby causing moisture to rise and form clouds.

“We expect the next few days to be cloudy conditions, some rainfall, and thunderstorms. We are expecting a moist weekend and a couple of days next weekend.”

Benjamin wanted it known that the Met Office operates using science and ideas of probability. “We do predictions, not prophesy.”

At 11 am the Ministry of Rural Development and Local Government reported on Twitter the river levels and damage reports. These included Caroni River at El Carmen (100 per cent full), Oropouche River (North) at Todd’s Road in the Couva area (84 per cent), Caroni River at Bamboo Settlement #3 (77 per cent), Arouca River (38 per cent), Caparo River (36 per cent) and Aripo River (34 per cent.) By 11.30 am the ministry reported the Oropouche River at Vega de Oropouche near Sangre Grande had “burst banks.” The Nariva River at Navet Village was 90 per cent full, the ministry said. The Ortoire River in places was 80-90 per cent full and the Poole River at Guayaguayare Road was 87 per cent full.

The ministry said rivers at Tamana, Coalmine, Caltoo Trace in Biche, and Martin Salazar Trace were variously 60-70 per cent full.

The MRDLG reported flooding in three regional corporations – Mayaro/Rio Claro (Cedar Grove Road), Tunapuna/Piarco (Uriah Butler Highway and Persad Street in Caroni) and Sangre Grande (Foster Road, Picton Road, Vega de Oropouche, Felmina Tobal Road, and Fishing Pond Road.) The ministry reported 90 flood reports at Tunapuna/Piarco, six at Sangre Grande, three at Penal/Debe and one at Mayaro/Rio Claro Regional Corporations. Four landslides were reported at San Juan/Laventille and one at Siparia Regional Corporations. Two reports of hazardous/fallen trees were made at Penal/Debe Regional Corporation. One report of high winds/roof damage came from the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation.

The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM) reported seven landslides and one fallen tree in north west Trinidad. Two cases of flooding had occurred in north central Trinidad, said the ODPM. No reports came of flooding in south central Trinidad. In south west Trinidad, the ODPM reported seven cases of flooding, one fallen tree, and one landslide.

For Tobago, the Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) reported two incidents of fallen trees and five landslides.

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