By Alpha Sesay
Care-SL in partnership with Health Alert and the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) has on Monday 26th September, 2022, held a community awareness raising engagement at Manfred Lane, East End of Freedom.
The move was taken in a bid to increase awareness on flood mitigation and other environmental hazards across the municipality of Freedom, When addressing the jam-packed gathering of all walks of life from Manfred Lane, Mount Aureole and other nearby communities, the Program Manager of Health Alert- Dalton John emphasized on the need for such engagement which is geared towards raising awareness on the dangers and aftermath of disaster like flooding and how to address and mitigate it.
He maintained that despite the loss of precious lives and destruction of valuable properties caused by flooding, but such leads to diseases outbreak.
Dalton John furthered that due to individual activities with the environment, the world at large is now experiencing severe climate change and global warming across the globe.
He said there are diseases like cholera after every flooding, thus encouraging stakeholders to be regularly cleaning their environment, drainages, backyards, brushing of grasses, stop throwing garbage in the drainages to avoid breeding of mosquitoes as malaria accounts for the frequent deaths of children.
He told the people to be planting trees to serve as windbreak and that
they should refrain from indiscriminately cutting down trees in order to mitigate disasters like flooding and mudslide.
During the engagement, community stakeholders highlighted their greatest concerns and fears.
Speaking on behalf of the Ginger Hall Community- Chief Denis Massaquoi thanked Health Alert and Care for the engagement.
Chief Massaquoi registered his greatest concern with regards potential flooding and other disasters that residents of the Manfred lane , Ginger Hall and other communities will experience in the near future as a result of the Hillside Bye Pass Road which is under construction.
According to him , the drainages are too shallow despite all efforts they have made to get the attention of SLRA , EPA , NDMA and the Ministry of Lands and Country Planning with regards to the improper construction of the drainages along the Hillside Bye Pass Road but said all efforts proved fruitless.
He said now they’ve started experiencing flooding, fence collapsing, houses destroyed due to the gravity of the water forcing to pass through the narrow drainages and thus giving cause for the water to over flow all over their communities.
He called on Health Alert , Care and NDMA to come to their aid to advocate on their behalf to the rightful authorities for these drainages to be expanded.
He also appealed to his people to be always vigilant especially during the night hours of rain.
Chief Pa Alimamy Samba Sesay on behalf of Mount Aureole Community also raised his concern with regards to the Hillside Bye Pass Road and its shallow drainages and culverts constructed despite all efforts to get the SLRA to intervene in addressing their concerned during the construction of the road stressing that their efforts and concerns were never given attention.
Sheik Amadu Fofanah, on behalf of Manfred Lane Community, shared his concern and called on authorities to intervene timely in appealing to SLRSA to find ways to properly construct the drainage that passes through their compound as that drainage is too shallow and is a potential hazard as flooding usually occur in that area due to blockage.
Saidu Sesay, an affected Community resident whose house was affected by the flooding, expounded on the looming disaster that will befallen the Manfred Lane and other Communities if actions are not taken now to address these potential disasters.
He maintained that they’re living in  hazardous communities due to the improper construction of the drainages along the Hillside Bye Pass Road and the shallow drainage that runs through SLRSA’s compound which usually accounts for the flooding that occurs in their community and some parts of Kissy Road as well.
