Tashieka Mair, Sunday Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU: When heavy rains rain lashed St. James last weekend, not many anticipated the damage they would cause.

Motorists and other persons using the Long Hill Road, between Kingate and Reading, encountered water up to three feet high as they approached the top of the hill.

It was a frightening reality for many, including two drivers, whose cars were literally pushed by the high volume of water rushing downhill, and who offered to be assisted by residents of surrounding communities.

The 'flooding', which Long Hill users say was caused by overflowing drains blocked by debris, caused a pile-up of traffic, resulting in persons waiting for hours. Others, lacking the patience to wait, drove back into Montego Bay and too routes.

The situation was made even more unbearable by stones and silt, washed down from the top of Long Hill and Kingate. This was almost a repeat of a similar situation that took place in 1993 when traffic backed up as far as the Herbert Morrison High School in Montego Bay after heavy showers.

"The authorities need to carry out major cleaning and maintenance of the gullies and drains on Long Hill," said the principal of the Reading Kindergarten and Preparatory School, Rose-Marie Spence.

"We have been affected by the flooding of Long Hill because our bridge is damaged and we are now only able to use the right side because all the top layer that was dug up is piled up on the other side."

The bridge was severely damaged after the gully - adjacent to the school - overflowed because of piles of debris. The damage to the bridge will cost the school more than $200,000 to repair. So far, Ms. Spence has not heard from the authorities in charge of maintaining the gullies and drains in the parish.

traffic congestion

"I called the parish council about the situation and I was told that this is an NWA (National Works Agency) issue. I have tried to get in touch with the NWA, but the phone rang without an answer," principal Spence reported.

She continued: "The damage to our bridge has added, somewhat, to the traffic congestion on the main road because parents trying to enter the school from the main road have to wait for other persons to drive out before they can drive on to the property, and this is a problem."

With the 'Long Hill experience' still fresh in the minds of users, residents in communities close to this road are afraid of a repeat of this situation, especially with the unpredictable rainy conditions the country has been experiencing.

Garage operator, Adewali Bowen, who saw first hand the impact of the flood from his business place at the top of the Long Hill Road, told The Sunday Gleaner that the situation could have been avoided if the drains were in better shape.

"Some persons from one of the utility companies had cut down some of the trees near the roadway and when parts of the trees fell in the drains, they just left them there. So the drains were blocked, and that is the cause of the flooding," he explained. "You don't even want to think about the kind of traffic jam that happens when this sort of thing happens; there is traffic as far back as Anchovy."

He believes, like Ms. Spence, that the proper maintenance of the gullies and drains, especially in the hurricane season, can help tremendously in averting further occurrences of flooding. Since last weekend's floods, persons have been seen cleaning the drains, but the gullies could continue to be a challenge because persons persistently throw garbage there.