Belize City Council Says Sudden Flooding not a Drainage Issue  

This weekend, Belize City residents were shocked when they discovered that several streets across the city were flooded with up to four inches of water, despite the lack of rainfall. According to the National Hydrological Service, the floodwaters are making their way down the Belize River and emptying out into the Haulover Creek, subsequently flooding several areas along the path. To address the flooding, the Belize City Council has implemented a pumping station to drain the excess water. Over the past few days, the floodwaters have ebbed and flowed in different areas without warning. Deputy Mayor, Allan Pollard tells us that the flooding is more than just a drainage issue.

 

Allan Pollard, Deputy Mayor, Belize City

“In most of the areas it has gone down, so that we have, we are very thankful for that. But as the expert have indicated to everyone, it’s really It’s a unique situation where the river is actually coming above normal heights on that mixed with high tide is a recipe for disaster, right?  We had a meeting yesterday with the mayor and you know we cannot  stress enough how much that we have to sensitize people to understand that climate change is real. It’s here. Everybody talks about, in the future when it comes to climate change, but we are actually living in examples of what. What we’re seeing, I’ve never personally seen the river that high. I’ve never seen streets being that flooded without any rainfall. It just shows that it’s not so much of a drainage issue, but just climate change in general. If you look at the seas, for example, someone sent me a video of the area by Hanga yesterday, and to see the sea level that high as well, it just shows overall what we’re going through is something that is very alarming. And we have to make sure that, We are putting the right measures in. The pumping station is one effort, but that alone cannot drain all the water out of Belize City and that’s a pilot program. We have to look at other areas, and we have to ensure that we are keeping up with the maintenance of the city as well to ensure that the water drains off as quickly as possible.”