Dear Editor,

We write on behalf of Southwood, Campbell’s Hill, and Jack Ruinna about the difficulties the communities have been encountering since 2017.

During the flood rains of May 2017, the two main bridges, Dam Head and Green River, were washed away, leaving the communities cut off from the main shopping districts of Trout Hall, Frankfield, and Chapleton. Children from the communities attend schools in these three shopping districts.

In October 2022, the communities mounted a demonstration in Trout Hall after a mother and her young daughter were washed away trying to navigate the treacherous waters of the raging Rio Minho. Farmers, schoolchildren, and other community members have to be risking their lives to get in and out of the communities. This is a disgraceful situation and after seven years no intervention has been made to alleviate the suffering of the communities.

It should be noted that Southwood, Campbell’s Hill, and Jack Ruinna comprise the watershed area for all of the northern communities of Clarendon North Western.

We want to use this medium to implore our political representatives and civil society to help find solutions to alleviate the sufferings of the people in these communities.

The mental and physical health of the people are declining every day, as once it starts to rain community members become worried about their loved ones who may choose to navigate the Rio Minho to get in and out of the communities.

We are not threatening or warning anybody, but what we can promise is that this will be a ballot box issue.

Orville Stephens